







































THE MYSTERY 
OF THE ERIK 



















( 
















HE TOOK CAREFUL AIM AT THE BEAR'S HEAD AND PULLED THE TRIGGER 

• [Page 74] 



THE MYSTERY 
OF THE ERIK 


BY 

FITZHUGH GREEN 

AUTHOR OF “CLEAR THE DECKS,” “ARCTIC DUTY,” 
“WON FOR THE FLEET,” ETC. 



D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 
NEW YORK : : 1923 : : LONDON 




COPYRIGHT, 1923, BY 

D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 



PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

FEB-8’23 


©C1A6 8C29 3 ^, V . 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER PAGE 

I. The Ship .i 

II. Bound North.9 

III. Ice!..20 

IV. The Midnight Sun .... 28 

V. Eskimos.36 

VI. The Pole Star ..... 46 

VII. Abandoned!..56 

VIII. Bears!.66 

IX. Treachery.76 

X. No Escape . . . . . . 85 

XI. Rudd Wins . . . . . .97 

XII. Suspense ...... 106 

XIII. No Hope! . . . . . .115 

XIV. More Mystery.126 

XV. The Wreck . . . . . . 136 

XVI. Norman's Prison.146 

XVII. Mutiny.156 

XVIII. Crushed in the Ice . . . . 167 

XIX. Piracy.179 

XX. Red Meat.190 

XXI. The Arctic Pall.201 


v 













VI 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 


PAGE 


XXII. Excitement . 

XXIII. The Derelict . 

XXIV. A Desperate Chance . 

XXV. The Race Begins . 

XXVI. More Speed! . . . 

XXVII. Baffled! . 

XXVIII. The Truth at Last . 


. 213 
. 224 
. 236 
. 248 
. 260 
. 274 
. 280 






THE MYSTERY 
OF THE ERIK 



THE MYSTERY 
OF THE ERIK 


CHAPTER I 
THE SHIP 

YELLOW taxicab broke from the traffic jam 



in front of the Pennsylvania Station and 


^ dashed with illegal speed towards the first 
crosstown street. 

“East River dock—Twenty-eighth—ten minutes 
to go!” came a muffled voice from within the cab. 

“Sure!” And the driver jammed on his emer¬ 
gency half a second before a thundering truck cut 
across his path. 

Seven minutes later the taxi swerved into the dock 
head and rumbled down the uneven planking. A 
gang of stevedores blocked the way. Beyond them 
was a tumbled mountain of packing cases, timbers, 
coils of rope, and other gear. And behind them all 
lay moored at the end of the dock a small vessel. 

The taxi side-stepped, jumped, and honked, and 
with one last spin of its steering wheel came to a 
stop opposite the small vessel’s gangway. 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“That’s the Erik, ain’t it?” shouted the driver. 

For answer the taxicab door sprang open. Out 
tumbled a bulky roll which might have been a sleep¬ 
ing bag, followed by a series of valises and parcels 
like so many oversized footballs. At the end emerged 
a stocky red-haired figure, hatless and unmistakably 
agitated. 

“How much?” he asked the driver. 

“Five bones,” came the prompt answer. 

The stocky young man drew himself up. His 
haste and agitation curiously disappeared. His 
flushed cheeks became a deep red. His already 
chunky hands that had been groups of nervous 
fingers rolled into solid fists, the bulk of a pair of 
large Irish potatoes. 

“Not on your life!” he said slowly. 

The driver opened his mouth but he did not speak. 
The irate lad before him was but a boy. And yet 
there was the determination and courage of a man 
in the narrowed blue eyes, the out-thrust chin, the 
close-shut mouth. 

One fist uncurled and dipped into a side pocket. 

“Here’s a dollar; and thanks for the speed,” said 
the young man quietly. The bluff worked perfectly. 

At this moment a kind of booming cough sounded 
from the ship’s rail. It appeared to come out of the 
throat of a massive white-whiskered man. The 
cough broke off into speech: 


2 


THE SHIP 


“Well, you made it I see.” 

“Certainly did, Captain Pike. Chicago train was 
late and I thought I’d miss the ship.” 

“You’re not the missing kind, my lad!” And 
again the Captain broke into his booming cough 
which was in reality a laugh hoarsened by forty-odd 
years of North Atlantic gales and choking fog. 

Captain Pike was right. Ruddock Winters— 
commonly known as “Red,” “Wintry,” or “Rudd”— 
was the sort that made a habit of seizing every real 
opportunity that came his way. Though born and 
brought up in Chicago, he had already made the 
acquaintance of men and cities from New York to 
San Francisco. 

A certain Uncle Jim Culver had been largely 
responsible for Rudd’s success. While visiting the 
boy’s father some years before, he had jokingly 
asked: 

“Rudd, how would you like me to send you to 
college?” 

At which Rudd had without hesitation jammed on 
his cap, given his dog’s right ear a farewell pull, and 
replied: 

“We’ve just got time to catch the noon train.” 

“For where?” gasped the astonished Uncle. 

“East,” was the laconic answer. 

“Well, I’ll be eternally jiggered!” 

But Rudd went and Uncle Jim footed the bill. 
3 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


And likewise, at the end of his Junior year, Rudd 
went east again on Uncle Jim. Only this time he 
had been forced to argue not only the generous uncle, 
but his whole family, into approval of his scheme. 

A government expedition had been organized to 
investigate the Northwest Passage; that is to say, 
the water route around the north end of North 
America. Captain Roald Amundsen, the famous 
Norwegian discoverer of the South Pole, had forced 
his little ship, the Gjoa, through this Passage some 
twenty years before. Since that time America had 
accumulated a vast merchant marine with a great 
number of vessels plying between the Atlantic and 
the Pacific coasts. The Panama Canal made the trip 
thousands of miles shorter than the old way around 
Cape Horn. But even now there was such a jam 
of business in the Canal, and both Seattle and the 
swiftly growing Alaskan cities demanded such vast 
quantities of freight, that a short cut around the 
upper fringe of the continent would mean millions of 
dollars saved. 

Rudd had read of the expedition in the papers. Its 
prospects of exploring new land and uncharted seas 
had fired him with a desire to try his hand at explora¬ 
tion. A request to Washington brought only the 
discouraging reply that he was too young for the 
work. Though the plans included but a three months’ 
stay in arctic regions, ice and foul weather might 
4 



Rudd's Track Chart to Point of Mutiny and Over Route 

of Escape. 




THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


force the ship to winter north, in which case only the 
most rugged men could endure the hardship and 
privation. 

“Goodness knows, I’m strong enough,” Rudd had 
wailed at the ever willing Uncle. “And it’s a chance 
I’ll never have again!” 

So Uncle Jim had sent him to his old friend Cap¬ 
tain Pike, skipper of the Erik, which had been 
chartered for the expedition. And Captain Pike, 
recognizing the value of Rudd’s type, had in turn 
recommended him to Dr. Barlow, who was in charge 
of the scientific party. The upshot was a telegram 
Rudd had received from the Doctor just forty-eight 
hours before: 

Will you accept position as my assistant? Erik 
sails Friday, June twenty. Wire reply. 

In exactly one hour Rudd had thrown what camp¬ 
ing gear he owned into several bags, dashed to the 
station and caught the fastest express for New York. 
He could not sleep for excitement, but lay tossing the 
whole night in a stuffy berth thinking of polar bears 
and Eskimos, dogs and walruses, and all the other 
arctic thrills he long had dreamed about. 

And now his dream was at last to come true! 

While Captain Pike sent a seaman for the bags 
Rudd glanced over the vessel that was to be his home 
for the summer. She was a stumpy, high-bowed 
6 


THE SHIP 


steamer with one smoke pipe and two masts. The 
rigging of these masts was unusually heavy for a 
vessel of her size, and just above the crosstress of 
each was secured a barrel. 

“What’s the idea of the barrels ?” Rudd asked the 
seaman. 

The man laid down the small trunk he had just 
hoisted to his shoulder and looked curiously at Rudd. 

“Ain’t ye never been north afore, sir?” he asked. 

His speech and tone were those of a “down easter” 
as the Grand Bank fishermen call people who live 
along the coast above Maine. 

“Once to Halifax,” asserted Rudd. 

The seaman shook his head. “They ain’t no ice 
there, sir. Them barrels is for our lookouts when 
we’re in the ice pack.” He lifted his hand vaguely. 

“Great masses an’ mountains of ice big as-” he 

hesitated, “big as ’em!” He pointed to the great 
office buildings towering along the New York sky 
line. 

“Gosh!” ejaculated Rudd. 

“Yessir. And they ain’t no way for a little ship 
like this to get through the floes except as how the 
lookout tells our helmsman to steer her. And some¬ 
times-” he shook his head and stopped. 

“And sometimes what?” asked Rudd after waiting 
a moment for the man to go on. 

He stepped closer and put his mouth to Rudd’s 

1 



THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

ear. “And sometimes they get crushed!” he whis¬ 
pered. 

Some invisible thing gripped strangely at Rudd’s 
heart. It wasn’t fear. It was more a sudden, 
serious understanding of the perils he would meet 
on this voyage. He glanced at the blunt bow of the 
Erik, at her staunch and heavy-timbered sides, her 
powerful masts. She was a bulldog, a fighter, with¬ 
out a doubt. 

“And yet—” muttered Rudd. There came to him 
memories of terrible arctic disasters he had read 
about: Sir John Franklin, the great Englishman, his 
ships smashed to kindling by gigantic icebergs, his 
crews starving and dying, never seen again alive. 

The seaman’s whispered words rang true: 

“And sometimes they get crushed!” 


CHAPTER II 


BOUND NORTH 


D R. BARLOW bustled aboard before Rudd 
had a chance to go below. He was a tall 
spare man with a huge nose and a wrinkled 
leathery skin. All his life he had been leading expe¬ 
ditions to queer parts of the world, and so combined 
the scholarly bearing of a scientist with the rugged 
and weathered physique of a mariner. 

“Hello, Rudd!” he greeted the boy familiarly. 
“Looks a mess, doesn’t it? But we’ll get away this 
afternoon.” 

He waved his hand at the littered deck. In fact, 
very little deck was visible for the great collection of 
supplies and equipment that were rapidly being 
swung aboard by the donkey engine. 

“Ten thousand pounds of food along,” laughed 
the Doctor. “Might have to winter in Coronation 
Gulf if we get stuck. And there’s that mass of 
magnetic instruments which are heavier than they 
look. By the way, I haven’t had a chance to find out 
whether you can do ordinary chart work. Can you ?” 
“Had a six months’ course of it with my trigo- 
9 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

nometry,” Rudd replied. “But I’m not much on the 
drawing end.” 

“Oh, that will all be done in Washington.” Dr. 
Barlow came a little closer to Rudd and lowered his 
tone. “You see our real task is to collect information. 
Our figures are worked up by specialists after we 
return. And while the territory through which we 
shall pass is part of the Canadian domain, we have 
agreed to keep quiet on any commercial discoveries 
we may make.” 

“You mean there may be gold or-” 

“See those timbers,” Dr. Barlow rudely inter¬ 
rupted. “We shall make sledges from them in case 
we winter.” 

Rudd was startled at this sudden change of tone 
and subject until he looked up and saw a third man 
had joined them. 

“Ah,” said the Doctor, as if he had just noticed 
the newcomer, “Rudd, I want you to know our First 
Officer, Mr. Menon.” 

Never before had Rudd looked into such a face 
as he saw confronting him. The man himself was 
of average size and build. His clothing was the 
rough blue of a down-east merchant sailor. In fact, 
there was nothing to make one look twice at him 
until his face was noted. It was the darkest, ugliest, 
most evil-featured countenance Rudd had ever seen 
on a man. His nose and chin were large and coarse. 


io 



BOUND NORTH 


His eyes were black points half hidden by great 
bushy brows. And the broad, loose slit of his mouth 
was circled by a long, thin mustache that drooped 
below his chin on either side and might have been 
made of horsehair so wiry was it. 

“How do you do, Mr. Winters?” said the officer 
with a bow and ostentatious courtesy which made 
Rudd suspicious at once. 

After he had gone Dr. Barlow again spoke in a 
low voice. 

“Don’t ask me why we have such a man aboard, 
Rudd, because I can’t answer the question. After 
the Erik arrived here, Dinger Brothers, from whom 
we had chartered her, wired that the regular First 
Officer would be replaced by Mr. Menon. When I 
saw him I objected strenuously. But Dinger 
Brothers insisted; and as it was too late to get an¬ 
other vessel I had to accept him. Between you and 
me we’re going to have trouble with the scoundrel 
before this cruise is over. The worst of it is the 
men seem to like him.” 

Here Captain Pike stepped up and announced that 
all would be ready to cast off at noon. 

“Will the tide be right ?” queried the Doctor. 

“There, there,” boomed the old Skipper with a 
twinkle in his eye. “Now just you let little things 
like tides and currents alone on this trip. From the 
amount of instruments and gilguys and gadgets I’ve 


ii 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


seen come aboard my ship, I think you’ll have your 
hands full of science without bothering with how we 
go or when.” 

“That’s right, Pike,” agreed the Doctor. “After 
that last trip along the Labrador, I’m willing to take 
your word about anything but weather.” And turn¬ 
ing to Rudd he added: “The old imbecile doesn’t 
think it’s blowing hard till the bower anchor has to 
be used to hold the helmsman to his wheel!” 

“Now, Doctor, you’ve never seen any real wind,” 
said the Skipper, raising a thick finger for emphasis. 
“Why, I can remember the time it blew so hard it 
took ten men to hold a sheepskin over a gimlet hole!” 

“Yes, and you also told me about that rain you 
had off Newfoundland. Let’s see, there was a barrel 
lying on its side by the bridge; and it didn’t have 
any top or bottom in it; and the rain came in faster 
through the bunghole than it could run out the ends! 
Wasn’t that it, you old liar?” 

The Captain went off shaking and booming and 
coughing until Rudd thought he would explode. 

“That’s exactly the kind of man for a trip like 
this,” said the Doctor. “Always in good humor; 
afraid of nothing under heaven; and with a physical 
strength and courage that breeds a truly respectful 
fear in the men under him.” 

Just as the city whistles were blowing for noon 


12 


BOUND NORTH 


all lines were cast off, the Erik stood out under her 
own steam, and headed up towards Hell Gate. 

It was a great moment for Rudd. When would 
he see his native land again? How would he bear 
the trials of such a voyage? Where would luxury 
and comfort next meet him after the confining 
months aboard the cramped little ship? 

These thoughts but flashed across his mind when 
there came the joyful realization that he was off— 
off for foreign lands and strange peoples! He took 
a deep breath of salt air and turned to find some one 
with whom he could share his great happiness. 

He found himself staring into the hideous face 
of Mr. Menon. 

“Very nice to be away, eh?” said the officer, with 
the same affected politeness that had proved so dis¬ 
tasteful to Rudd on their first meeting. “Do you 
expect soon to come back here?” 

Rudd hesitated. He didn’t wish to talk to the 
man he so instinctively hated. Yet if he were to 
enjoy the voyage he, like Dr. Barlow, would cer¬ 
tainly have to be civil to him. 

“Why, yes,” said Rudd slowly. “Yes, of course. 
I have to be back for my senior year at college next 
fall.” 

“Well, my dear young man, I trust that if you 
don’t get home for a year or so it won’t make any 
too great difference.” 


13 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

For a moment Mr. Menon leered at Rudd’s amazed 
look and then turned away. 

“What on earth does the ape mean?” Rudd asked 
himself. “We shan’t winter north unless we are 
forced to. Yet he seems to take trouble for granted.” 

His first impulse was to tell Dr. Barlow what he 
had heard. But on second thought he concluded to 
find out more if possible before adding to the leader’s 
burdens. 

The ship touched at Boston long enough to pick 
up Professor Deal and a young sport named Caverly. 
The former was to collect arctic plants and animals 
for the University Museum, and the latter was 
simply a passenger. His father, the wealthy head 
of Caverly & Company, famous importers, had con¬ 
tributed to the expedition with the understanding 
that his son might become a member with no particu¬ 
lar duties. Thus young Caverly might have the 
benefit of a rough trip and at the same time collect 
valuable information for his father on the fur 
situation north of Hudson Bay. 

As regards the rough trip part of it, Reginald 
Caverly certainly needed some such treatment. His 
principal luggage consisted of tinned sweets and 
cigarettes. His principal idea consisted of more or 
less contempt for his fellow men. And his chief 
and only ambition was to convince every one that he 
14 


BOUND NORTH 

was the cleverest and most original young man in 
the world. 

There were now in the cabin mess Captain Pike, 
Dr. Barlow, Rudd, Mr. Menon, Professor Deal, and 
Reginald Caverly. The Second Officer, a young 
Canadian named Norman, and the old Scotch Chief 
Engineer ate at such such irregular times that Rudd 
saw little of them the first few days out. 

The last days in June, coal was taken aboard at 
Sydney, Nova Scotia, and by the morning of July 2 
the Erik was well on her way across the Gulf of 
St. Lawrence. 

Rudd had come on deck for a look about before 
breakfast. He was still full of the excitement of 
leaving civilization behind him and yet he had been a 
little out of luck in the way of companionship. The 
ship officers had been so busy getting cargo stowed 
below and the two scientists so engrossed with their 
plans that Rudd was left much to his own devices. 
Caverly, of course, was nearly his own age. But 
that unfortunate young man had been deathly sea¬ 
sick ever since the ship sailed, thereby causing him 
much personal humiliation. 

Rudd found the ship surrounded by a murky fog. 
At regular intervals the whistle gave a long groan of 
warning for any ship that might be in the neighbor¬ 
hood to look out. Shrouds dripped and the black 
smoke rolled overboard, laying a dirty blanket astern. 

15 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


He found the bridge was deserted except for 
helmsman and one officer. The latter stood close to 
the wheel conversing in low tones with the slickered 
seaman. As Rudd arrived just as the whistle gave a 
blast, his presence was not noticed. 

“It won’t do down here,” he heard the officer say. 
It was Mr. Menon’s harsh voice! 

“But ain’t it dangerous to wait till we get her 
north?” replied the helmsman. 

“Not for us who have had sledging experience. 
And there are Eskimos at Pons Inlet that would 
look out for us during the winter.” 

The helmsman shook his head. “I ain’t strong 
for takin’ chances, I ain’t. But I guess a man’d do 
most anything for the price you offer.” 

“Sure,” said Menon, “and haven’t I made the 
deposit you asked for at Sydney? How about the 
others?” 

“Well, there are six out of the seventeen forrud 
that you can count on. Maybe more later on when 
Johnson and I have had a chance to talk with them. 
Aft you know better than I.” 

Menon shrugged his shoulders. “They’re easy 
enough. Why-” 

At that moment he spied Rudd, and nudged the 
seaman. 

“Good morning, Mr. Winters,” he said. “We’ve 
just been discussing a little entertainment we might 
16 



BOUND NORTH 


give aboard when the ship gets north—sort of sailor’s 
minstrel, you might say.” 

Out of the corner of his eye Rudd saw the officer 
step meaningly on the helmsman’s foot. He walked 
to the end of the bridge without answering their 
weak attempt to deceive him. Then, realizing the 
danger of letting Menon know how suspicious he 
was over what he had just heard, he returned and 
remarked: “Good idea, Mr. Menon. We need 
something to cheer us up in weather like this.” 

Rudd meant to go to Dr. Barlow that very morn¬ 
ing and broach the subject of his anxiety about the 
First Officer’s nefarious plans—whatever they might 
be. But one thing after another prevented. Then, 
in the late afternoon, after Belle Isle Straits had been 
passed, the wind freshened and any sort of undis¬ 
turbed conversation was impossible. 

“Little breeze to-night, eh?” remarked Captain 
Pike, after the Chief Engineer had invited him up 
to have a look at the sky. 

“Yes, sir, and I’m thinking we might lash that 
lumber on the skids so my smoke pipe guys won’t 
loosen up when the rub comes.” 

“Right!” agreed the Skipper. “Here, Boatswain, 
rig for heavy weather.” 

These preparations were none too soon. The Erik 
was out in the broad Atlantic north of Newfound¬ 
land. The whole three-thousand-mile sweep of open 
1 7 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


sea from Baffin Bay down was a breeding place for 
gales. Now heavy gusts came out of the northwest 
and sheets of spray laced up over the bulwarks at 
every dip of the bow. 

By supper time a full gale was blowing. Great 
combing seas reared mast-high on either hand. The 
inky water was streaked with froth or riddled by 
cutting streams of brine shot across it by the terrific 
wind. 

Captain Pike’s great hulking figure clung to the 
bridge rail. “Stand by your sea anchor!” he bawled. 

With painful slowness his men struggled on deck 
below him. An old sail was broken out of its locker 
and dragged forward. Two spare whaleboat spars 
and several two-by-fours were finally lashed together 
to make what looked like a rough dip net. From the 
net’s corners led a bridle of stout lines joined by a 
metal ring to a heavy hawser, which in turn was let 
up through the starboard hawser-pipe. 

“Heave her!” roared the Skipper. But his voice 
was swept away in the storm. Only the signal of 
his raised arm indicated that all was ready for casting 
the sea anchor overboard. 

“Down helm!” he commanded, and the laboring 
vessel swung slowly into the teeth of the gale. 

Ten minutes later the Erik rode safely nose to 
wind. The mass of water-logged canvas and spars 
to which she was fast acted as a floating anchor— 
18 


BOUND NORTH 


whence its name—and kept her from falling off into 
the trough of the sea and being capsized. 

As Rudd left the bridge for some dry clothes he 
was filled to bursting with admiration for the skill 
and hardihood of all seamen, Captain Pike in par¬ 
ticular. But just as he entered the after hatch his 
glow of pleasure was cooled by sight of Mr. Menon’s 
friend and accomplice—the helmsman of the previous 
watch. And he would have been still further dis¬ 
couraged had he heard the man say to another sailor: 

“I tell you I don’t like it. If she’s what the Boss 
says there sure ain’t no safety in this kind of 
weather!” 


CHAPTER III 


ICE! 


HE seaman’s misgivings as well as Rudd’s 



luckily proved ill-founded. The stout little 


Erik rode out the gale as if she had been 


a fat-sided duck. Three days the wind roared 
through the shrouds and the seas flung by in white- 
crested ranks. But the decks were scarcely wet. 

On the fourth morning the wind hauled aft. The 
sea anchor was cut adrift and canvas spread on both 
masts. With a full head of steam on the engines, 
the Erik boiled northward at a good fifteen knots. 

“I thought we’d see some ice along here,” Rudd 
remarked to Dr. Barlow. 

“Patience, old scout,” smiled the leader. “You’ll 
see a-plenty when the time comes. As a matter of 
fact that blow took us a little outside the southerly 
stream that flows down from Baffin Bay. In it are 
the thousands of great icebergs which are born yearly 
from the Greenland glaciers. One of them sank the 
Titanic a few years ago. No, there’s no ice near 
yet.” 

Rudd wasn’t sure how the Doctor could be so 
positive until a few days later when he awakened 


20 


ICE! 


from a sound sleep with the feeling that something 
must be wrong with the ship. For a minute he lay- 
still wondering what could bring such a queer sensa¬ 
tion of danger. All was quiet. There was no sound 
of any sort of commotion overhead. Unable to 
stand his anxiety Rudd threw on his trousers and 
leather coat. On deck he suddenly realized what 
was wrong. After ten days of tossing the vessel 
was absolutely level in the water. And though the 
throbbing engines told him she was under way, there 
was no movement of the steady deck to indicate she 
was even afloat. It was as if he had in some miracu¬ 
lous way been transferred to the tranquil hold of 
a Mississippi River steamboat. 

On topside there was still no explanation of the 
mystery. Due to the northern latitude, daylight now 
lasted all night; even midnight being bright enough 
to read a newspaper. The fog common to northern 
regions still clung to the sea’s surface which was 
flat and glassy. 

“Can we have entered some inland water?” 
thought Rudd, and made his way hastily to the 
bridge. Scarcely had he reached the head of the 
ladder when a long cry came from the barrel in the 
foremast. It was the lookout. 

“Hard a-sta-a-a-r-board, sir!” 

The words brought a quiver to Rudd’s back. 


21 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Something was happening. He still didn't know 
exactly what. 

The wheel spun round and the Erik's nose fell off 
so rapidly she seemed to spin on her heel. 

A sudden chattering sound broke from the smoky 
mist ahead. It was as if a thousand seabirds were 
twittering to one another. 

“Full speed astern!" barked Norman, who had 
the deck. 

A quartermaster swung the engine-room telegraph 
back with a vicious jerk that threatened to pull the 
mechanism out by its roots. 

Then Rudd got the thrill of his life. For a sec¬ 
ond he thought an ocean liner was bearing down 
upon them. But instantly he realized no vessel was 
to be met in these deserted waters. Already the 
Erik was a thousand miles north of the trade lanes. 
A gray mountain loomed dead ahead. Its size was 
so colossal that the ship seemed to have slid into the 
gloom of a land-locked harbor. 

Such is the gigantic stature of an iceberg. 

“Give her all you’ve got!" bawled Norman down 
the voice tube. 

He was not a moment too soon. Scarcely had 
his maneuver carried the Erik clear and given her 
a comfortable sternboard when a rumble like that 
of April thunder arose from the berg. A series of 
fearful crashes followed. It was as if some sea 


22 


ICE! 


monster had broken loose and in his rage was throw¬ 
ing boulders big as houses about in the sea. Swirling 
water frothed past the ship and strange choppy 
waves rocked her jerkily. 

Rudd stood petrified at the phenomenon. A voice 
at his elbow startled him out of his trance. 

“Pleasant navigation, what?” It was Dr. Barlow 
grinning broadly. “Nice little surprise for break¬ 
fast, I call it, to have a million-ton iceberg crop up 
right in the course we’re trying to steer I” 

“Well—I—guess—yes!” stammered Rudd. 

“Notice the difference in the sea?” asked the 
Doctor. 

“No roll, you mean? What’s the trouble?” 

“I’d hardly call it trouble. Pretty nice after that 
storm, I think. Means ice. Soon as a flat calm 
comes we know there’s ice ahead. Ice kills even the 
ground swell. Trash ice, small broken pieces that 
is, are about all we find along here. Trash ice and 
bergs. That fellow we nearly rammed must be on 
the edge of the field.” 

“Guess we’d have stove the whole bow in if we’d 
hit it,” ventured Rudd. 

“No, the danger is not so much that of collision. 
Our bow is ten feet of solid oak. And the timbers 
running aft are double-braced for fifty feet. Peril 
lies chiefly in the calving. ‘Calving’ is the arctic term 
for breaking off of huge masses of ice from a glacier 

23 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


or iceberg. Both become rotten in the summer 
warmth and the slightest shake will snap off lumps 
as big as apartment houses. All that noise you heard 
was the calving caused by the slight ripple we made 
on our approach. And the subsequent row was the 
capsizing of the berg itself.” 

“You mean it turned over?” 

“Yes. Ice is so nearly the same density as water 
that seven-eighths of it floats beneath the surface. 
That mountain we saw through the mist was only a 
fraction of the whole. And when large hunks came 
off, its balance was disturbed sufficiently to cause the 
entire iceberg to topple over and float in a new 
position.” 

While Dr. Barlow was speaking a rift of sun¬ 
light cut through the fog. Several puffs of air rip¬ 
pled the water, then freshened to a breeze; and in 
the space of seconds, as if by an invisible hand, the 
heavy vapor blanket was drawn from the sea’s sur¬ 
face. 

“Oh-h!” gasped Rudd. 

Spread before his eyes lay an endless expanse of 
sparkling blue water dotted by a myriad of pure 
white ice floes. Near at hand, in isolated grandeur, 
floated the great berg that had so nearly annihilated 
the Erik. Here and there through the field floated 
other bergs. And from it all came the unending 
chattering noises that had so mystified Rudd, noises 
24 


ICE! 


caused by little waves splashing under the shelves 
they cut in the fragile edges of each ice cake. 

“Summer slush,” explained Dr. Barlow. “The 
solid fields that jam the upper end of Baffin Bay 
break out with the tide each summer and drift south¬ 
ward until they gradually go to pieces in the warm 
edge of the Gulf Stream off Newfoundland.” 

Already the ship had begun to crunch through the 
cakes, her way perceptibly slowed. 

“Won’t it cut a hole in our side?” asked Rudd 
anxiously. 

“Not by a jugful! Double sheathing we’ve got, 
with a metal plating over that to stand for just such 
scraping as this.” 

While Rudd continued to marvel at the brilliant 
scene he noticed emerge from the cabin hatch a 
staggering figure he recognized as Caverly. Poor 
fellow! He at least could begin to enjoy some of the 
voyage now that his seasickness had disappeared. 
In friendly spirit Rudd stepped down to greet him. 

“Great stuff!” he exclaimed, nodding towards the 
berg astern. 

Caverly stared coldly at his shipmate without so 
much as glancing at the berg. 

“Nearly rammed it, you know,” continued Rudd, 
a little embarrassed by the other’s rudeness. 

“Really?” said the green-faced Caverly. 
“Humph!” 


25 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


And that was all. He rammed his hands into his 
pockets and stalked past with all the dignity his 
weakness would permit. 

Then the humor of such behavior struck Rudd full 
force. He struggled to control the chuckles that 
bubbled up. “Holy bowlines!” he giggled, “if His 
Majesty doesn’t think I’m the galley boy!” 

Rudd watched Caverly curiously. He shambled 
forward near the foremast where Mr. Menon stood 
near the rail directing the stowage of some ground 
tackle. When the men had finished their task and 
laid below, Caverly sidled up to the First Officer and 
took his arm. Some word passed between them 
which Rudd was unable to catch. But the friendly 
gesture coupled with what he already had seen of 
the disagreeable Mr. Menon brought a determina¬ 
tion to find Dr. Barlow at once and make a clean 
breast of the conversation he had overheard the day 
the storm began. 

Dr. Barlow listened with all seriousness. And 
yet, when Rudd had finished describing Mr. Menon’s 
threatening words to the helmsman, he firmly refused 
to accept Rudd’s view of the matter. 

“The past days have been a revelation to me,” 
observed the Doctor. “Mr. Menon has without 
doubt an ugly look about him. And he has within 
your hearing apparently hinted at some sort of 
treachery. Yet I have never seen better seamanship 
26 


ICE! 


than he displayed during the gale. Moreover, Cap¬ 
tain Pike tells me he is thoroughly satisfied with him 
as an officer. The men obey his orders implicitly.” 

“But doesn’t that bear out exactly what I have 
said?” was Rudd’s doubting reply. “He has won 
enough friends in the forecastle by threat or bribery 
to make him stronger than the Captain himself.” 

Dr. Barlow patted Rudd’s back reassuringly. 
“Now look here, old man, don’t wish any bookish 
romance on us. These are picked men aboard. They 
are well paid and well fed. They have every reason 
to know they will be home in the autumn. Even if 
they aren’t, they will get good money for a winter 
north. The ship is specially built for rough work. 
No harm can befall her without the most excep¬ 
tional misfortune in choosing our way west. Let’s 
enjoy ourselves while we may, and not look too much 
for trouble just because there is a seasick weakling 
and a piratical-looking mate among us.” 

But Rudd was not convinced. He shook his head 
and glanced forward to where Caverly and Mr. 
Menon still had their heads together. 

“Perhaps you’re right, Doctor,” he faltered. 
“But—well, I don’t know.” 

He was destined to know sooner than he realized. 


CHAPTER IV 
THE MIDNIGHT SUN 

T HAT evening all hands gathered on deck to 
see the midnight sun. For nearly two 
weeks the ship had been navigated by dead 
reckoning alone. But this day Captain Pike had 
got a good sight of the sun for latitude near noon. 
His computation put the Erik on the outer boundary 
of Melville Bay, that great scoop on the upper west¬ 
ern edge of Greenland. Here as early as May the 
sun ceases to set. On June 21 it reaches its greatest 
declination. And not until late August does it begin 
to dip below the horizon at night. Even then, as in 
the spring, daylight lasts through the twenty-four 
hours. 

In October comes the darkness. With the waning 
summer, cold increases, so that by the time the sun 
disappears every bay and fiord is locked with heavy 
ice that grows through the terrible winter until it is 
more than a fathom thick. 

As the sun dipped lower and lower in the west, 
the wild spread of sea and floes took on a beautiful 
rosy hue. Even the weather-beaten little Erik was 
transfigured by the light. 

28 


THE MIDNIGHT SUN 


“Looks like a picture post card,” said Rudd, in 
an effort to describe the unreality of the brilliant 
tints and hues about him. 

“Does indeed!” agreed Dr. Barlow. “And you 
will see many other magnificent sights before you 
reach home again. When the fog disappears this 
arctic atmosphere is so extraordinarily free from 
dust or moisture that color effects are far more sharp 
than in the south where smoke and dirt particles 
create a continual haze over everything. Even the 
famed mountain air of the Rockies cannot be com¬ 
pared with the knifelike keenness of the far north. 

Lower and lower rolled the great red ball of the 
sun. At eleven-thirty its under edge touched the 
horizon just west of north. Strata of air at differ¬ 
ent densities caused refraction and distorted the flam¬ 
ing ball to a series of grotesque rectangular shapes. 
One minute it would be long and narrow. The 
next, glowing humps and angles would deform it to 
a lop-sided conflagration as if some vast city were 
burning at the edge of the world. 

“Twelve o’clock, sir,” announced the quarter¬ 
master. 

“Strike eight bells,” from Captain Pike. 

And Rudd saw for the first time the strange 
spectacle of the sun shining at exactly the middle 
of the night. 

His emotion was not lessened when Caverly 

29 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


stepped up and began to converse as if he and 
Rudd had been growing friends instead of almost 
utter strangers since the cruise began. 

“Saw the same thing off North Cape, Norway, 
some years ago,” the Boston lad observed. 

“You did?” returned Rudd politely. He had 
heard from Professor Deal that Caverly’s father had 
made a point of sending his son all over the world 
for the sake of education. 

“Yes,” went on the globe-trotter, “and I nearly 
saw the midnight sun at the other end of the earth 
off New Zealand.” 

The speaker couldn’t resist a slight air of superi¬ 
ority as he described his exploits. Yet Rudd was so 
relieved at this marked change from Caverly’s for¬ 
mer enmity that he was quite willing to play second 
fiddle to the boaster. Furthermore, Rudd’s physical 
superiority was so marked that he was prepared to be 
quite satisfied even if Caverly should claim a visit 
to the moon. 

“Must be great to be able to travel any old place 
any old time,” said Rudd with real eagerness. 

Caverly gave him a sharp look. “Say,” he said, 
“how would you like to take a trip abroad with me 
next year?” 

This was a little more than Rudd had bargained 
for. He had had experience enough with men to 
appreciate the strength of true character. No real 
30 


THE MIDNIGHT SUN 


man was going to snub a fellow one minute and 
offer him unlimited hospitality the next unless there 
was something behind it. 

“We could leave Boston in June and be back in 
time for Christmas,” went on the other. 

“I tell you, Caverly,” began Rudd cautiously. 

“Call me Reggie, will you?” broke in his com¬ 
panion. 

“Well— Reggie —” echoed Rudd with some diffi¬ 
culty; the name somehow didn’t feel right in his 
mouth—“it’s pretty fine of you to want to do any¬ 
thing like that for me.” 

But while Reggie went on describing the attrac¬ 
tions of such a journey Rudd kept wondering what 
could be behind his sudden friendship. Was it pos¬ 
sible that the lad was in cahoots with Mr. Menon, 
and the officer had persuaded him to win Rudd to 
their evil scheme, whatever it was? 

At this moment Mr. Menon himself strode swiftly 
aft and leaned over the cabin skylight. This was 
rather a strange act in view of the fact that all hands 
and the cook were still clustered near the rail dis¬ 
cussing the spectacular beauty of the midnight sun. 

Rudd watched him covertly, noting with interest 
an inexplicable intensity of feeling that seemed to 
stiffen the man’s hawklike features. A moment 
later Mr. Menon clenched his fists and swore under 
3i 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

his breath. Then he dashed to the hatch and dis¬ 
appeared below. 

Almost immediately came the dull thud of a blow 
and the outcry of a man hurt, followed by crashing 
sounds of a struggle. Before Rudd could shout or 
move Dr. Barlow dashed past him and down the 
companionway from which issued the tumult of a 
fight. Silence followed, punctuated by spurts of 
angry talk as if some one were explaining the trou¬ 
ble. Then Mr. Menon reappeared, dragging behind 
him a fireman named Boggs, followed by Dr. Barlow 
looking thoroughly angry. 

“Take him right up to the Captain,” snapped the 
Doctor. 

“Bet your boots!” snarled Mr. Menon through his 
teeth. “And I hope he puts the thief in irons.” 

The Skipper, overhearing the riot from the 
bridge, came to meet them. Seamen and engineers 
gathered near the mainmast in a curious sullen 
crowd. Rudd, remembering vividly his early sus¬ 
picions of the First Officer, looked from him to 
his captive in an effort to understand what connec¬ 
tion this new trouble might have with what had 
gone before. 

“You tell him, Doctor,” urged Mr. Menon. 

“Captain Pike,” began Dr. Barlow, “this is a 
case for your judgment and discipline. Through 
the alertness of your First Officer we have caught 
32 


THE MIDNIGHT SUN 


a thief among us. Fireman Boggs took advantage 
of the absence of all of us from below to rifle my 
room. Mr. Menon discovered him rummaging 
through my locker.” 

Captain Pike turned his keen gaze upon the cul¬ 
prit. His attitude was one of firmness and severity. 
And yet there was a measure of fairness in his kind 
old white-whiskered face that encouraged confi¬ 
dence. “Have you anything to say, Boggs?” he 
asked. 

Boggs squirmed in the grip that held him and 
gave Mr. Menon an anxious side glance. 

“Let him go,” commanded the Skipper. 

With a threatening scowl the Officer released his 
hold. 

“Now Boggs—?” 

“It’s not true, sir,” began the alleged thief. “I 
wasn’t down there to steal. I had cause to find 
out——” 

A sort of snarl escaped from the compressed lips 
of Mr. Menon. “Now don’t lie about it, you beach- 
scat!” 

“Silence, Mr. Menon,” ordered the Captain. 
“Now go on, Boggs. You say you had cause?” 

At this moment some one in the crowd of men 
near the mast cleared his throat loudly. Rudd, keyed 
to alertness by the whole fracas, looked up quickly 
with the accused man in time to catch the same sort 


33 



THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


of villainous and threatening look from one of the 
deck hands that Mr. Menon had given a moment be¬ 
fore. It was too much for poor Boggs. His 
shoulders hunched, his hands began to tremble, and 
he nearly collapsed on the deck. 

“It's true, sir,” he said, with tears in his voice. 
“I just thought I’d see what I could get.” 

“Quite so,” broke in Dr. Barlow testily. “Cap¬ 
tain, I have been to sea before and there is nothing 
so loathsome as a man who would rob his own ship¬ 
mates. I hope you see fit to punish this man ap¬ 
propriately.” Mr. Menon shuffled his feet. “And,” 
continued the Doctor, “with equal fairness commend 
the attention to duty shown by Mr. Menon.” 

Captain Pike said nothing for a moment. He 
stared searchingly first into the injured and deter¬ 
mined countenance of Dr. Barlow; then at the tri¬ 
umphant leer on Mr. Menon’s visage. Last of all 
he studied the tear-streaked smudges on Boggs* 
cheeks. 

“The trouble is,” he said at last, “that while I 
have been acquainted with you, Dr. Barlow, and you, 
Mr. Menon, for a goodly number of years, I have 
known Lem Boggs since the day he was born; I 
knew his father and his grandfather before him. 
And I have never heard of any of them doing any¬ 
thing dishonest.” He stroked his white whiskers 
slowly. “I appreciate your position, gentlemen, and 
34 


THE MIDNIGHT SUN 


I have every determination that wrongdoing shall 
be fully punished on my ship. But I should like to 
think this matter over. Please give me until to-mor¬ 
row. Until then, Boggs shall be free. I hold myself 
personally responsible for him. Do you hear that, 
Boggs?” 

Rudd couldn’t help a smile at the wretch’s look of 
relief. But he was thoroughly disappointed at the 
expression of disapproval that came over Dr. Bar¬ 
low’s face. Was it possible that he was playing 
right into the hands of this villain, Menon ? Was it 
possible that the whole thing was framed up either 
to discredit Captain Pike, even Boggs, and win Dr. 
Barlow unwittingly to the side of the First Officer? 

“And there’s that shrimp, Caverly, trying to entice 
me with his offers!” thought Rudd. “I can see my¬ 
self traveling with a lollypop like that!” 

A shout from the mast brought him out of his 
painful reflections. 

“Land ho!” 

Greenland at last! 


CHAPTER V 


ESKIMOS 


APTAIN PIKE almost immediately recog¬ 



nized the land ahead as Cape York. That 


meant the first lap of the cruise was done. 

“Here it is,” Dr. Barlow pointed out to Rudd on a 
chart spread over the cabin table. “You see we are 
in seventy-five degrees north latitude, over two thou¬ 
sand miles due north of New York. Greenland is a 
great island continent. Few people have any con¬ 
ception of the enormous expanse that lies within 
its rock borders.” 

Rudd traced the outline with his fingers. Maps 
that he had seen in his geographies did not show so 
clearly as this arctic chart the vast area bounding one 
side of the Polar Sea. It was a pear-shaped body of 
land, 1,500 miles from tip to tip, and about 1,000 
miles wide at its broadest part. Melville Bay was 
simply a gigantic bite out of the western edge, with 
Cape York at its extremity. 

“All expeditions on this side of America make 
Cape York first,” explained the Doctor, “in order to 
avoid the ice pack brought down by the Baffin Land 


ESKIMOS 


currents to the west. Also we can get some idea of 
ice conditions we shall meet by climbing the low peak 
you see just behind the Cape. There is a landing 
possible for boats at that point.” 

“I don’t see much land,” commented Rudd in a 
disappointed tone. 

The Doctor chuckled. “Man alive, don’t you know 
that ninety per cent of Greenland is buried under an 
ice cap thousands of feet thick? Its interior is one 
great glacier. Only this narrow fringe along the 
coast and a trifling area near Cape Farewell at the 
southern tip are free from ice and snow. That 
gray-blue shadow you see running back from the 
Cape is an ice blanket that runs up to an altitude of 
nearly ten thousand feet at its highest point. Accu¬ 
mulation of snow on its back creates pressure enough 
to send forth the rivers of ice we call glaciers creep¬ 
ing out from the fiords and over the land itself. As 
the glaciers recede, great gorges and hollows are left 
in the rocky heights, scoured out by the terrible 
weight of untold billions of tons of ice flooding over 
them through the centuries.” 

Even this brief description brought a feeling of 
solemnity to Rudd as he contemplated the gigantic 
forces of nature as compared with puny human 
beings. 

As the Erik neared the Cape the low brown blur 
which it first had seemed rose gradually above the 
37 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


horizon until it became a reddish highland nearly 
crowded into the sea by the massed wall of white 
ice directly behind it. 

“Pretty bare looking country all right,” said Rudd. 

“Rather,” agreed the Doctor. “We're nearly a 
thousand miles north of the tree line now. In South 
Greenland where the small Danish colonies of Eski¬ 
mos fish and hunt, a type of stunted willow manages 
to endure the severe winters. Up here only the 
hardiest plants can exist through the brief and snowy 
summer.” 

“You mean it snows in summer, too?” 

“I should think so, maybe you’ll see a drizzle 
of rain once or twice. Snowstorms in July and 
August are by no means unusual. This is not 
Alaska. The settled part of that territory is hun¬ 
dreds of miles south of us. Trees grow, rain rains, 
and all manner of civilized weather occurs. Up here 
in the real arctic you will find a ferocity of climate 
not to be compared with any winter you have ever 
known.” 

“Then how do the Eskimos exist?” 

Before the Doctor could.reply Norman came run¬ 
ning up to say that he had sighted some of the native 
boats threading their way through the ice. Rudd 
jumped into the rigging for a look. 

At first he could see nothing but the unbroken 
spread of ice pans and water lanes. Then something 
38 


ESKIMOS 


like a black bug became visible, darting in and out 
among the ice. Several other black bugs followed 
close behind. A little later the bugs turned into 
tiny craft no wider than a canoe, and with but a 
few inches freeboard. In fact, each small wave 
washed right over their decks. 

They were the famous Eskimo kayaks, probably 
the most remarkable type of boat in the world. A 
kayak’s frame may be either small bones or bits of 
driftwood lashed at its joints. Over it is stretched 
a cover of sealskins sewed together. The skins 
shrink and form a taut water-tight hull and deck. 
The hunter sits in a small hole at the boat’s center. 
As the total depth is less than a foot his weight 
hangs suspended, as it were, below the center of 
flotation. Thus, instead of being balanced, he can 
be said to be hung like a pendulum in his kayak. 
Heavy seas will not capsize him. Swift walrus can 
scarcely escape him. And even the sharpest ice pin¬ 
nacle cannot cut the tough hide which alone protects 
him from the icy water outside. 

Four of the hunters clambered over the side at 
the request of Captain Pike, who had met them 
several times on his trips north with Peary. After 
a brief greeting he led them to the galley and ordered 
the cook to serve coffee. 

These Eskimos were the strangest looking people 
Rudd had ever set eyes upon. While their faces 
39 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


were round and fat and greasy their bodies were 
almost slender; and they were so short that any one 
of them could have walked under his outstretched 
arm without striking it. They were dressed entirely 
in skins. Boots of scraped seal covered their legs 
to their knees; breeches of white bearskin and shirts 
of the hair seal clad the rest of their bodies. Their 
long black hair fell over their shoulders. 

Rudd approached one for a better look at him. 

“Shuuaqsuak?” inquired the Eskimo with a broad 
grin. 

But just then Rudd got a whiff of the fellow and 
nearly fainted. Such a rank odor met his civilized 
nostrils that he gagged. Something in his expression 
must have communicated his feelings to the natives. 
They all began to laugh and jabber at the same time. 

Captain Pike stuck his head over the bridge-rail 
and listened. “They're on to you, Rudd,” he 
laughed. “They say ‘the White-man’s nose is bigger 
than an Eskimo’s but not nearly as strong. It can’t 
even stand the smell of an igloo.’ ” 

“Should think not,” retorted Rudd emphatically, 
“if it’s anything like the packing house perfume 
these birds carry!” 

He soon got over his squeamishness, though. 
After dinner he joined a party in the whaleboat and 
landed near the Eskimo encampment just clear of 
the beach ice. There were five skin tents or tupiks 
40 


ESKIMOS 


in which the Eskimos lived in summer, as snow 
igloos are too hot and damp. At least two hundred 
dogs and twenty children of all ages swarmed about 
the white men. Several women .appeared shyly at 
the tent doors carrying babies in a kind of pouch in 
the skin shirts they wore. 

“Is this all there are?” Rudd asked of the Doctor. 

“By no means. There are at least thirty-five 
families in this tribe, nearly three hundred men, 
women, and children. They are distributed in small 
wandering groups up and down the coast for several 
hundred miles. Fortunately they are entirely cut 
off from civilization except for the occasional expe¬ 
ditions that touch here or winter at one of their 
more northern camping sites.” 

He went on to relate how each family is abso¬ 
lutely independent; how there is no money, no mail, 
no business, no war, nor any of the other nuisances 
civilized man is accustomed to endure. Lifework 
among them consists wholly in securing meat to feed 
one’s family and enough skins to clothe them. All 
other time is put in at playing games, visiting, and 
planning the next hunting party. Walrus and seal 
meat are the principal articles of diet. Polar bears, 
caribou, and musk oxen are considered greater deli¬ 
cacies, probably because somewhat more difficult to 
secure. 

“You must appreciate the fact,” said the Doctor 
4i 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


emphatically, “that here you have almost the only 
race of people that has not been spoiled by the white 
man. In Alaska the Eskimo has become a dirty 
parasite. In the south seas the islander has become 
diseased and lazy. Everywhere civilized man has 
gone, he has visited his bad habits and his troubles 
upon the happy and independent tribes of human 
beings which have been so fortunate as to escape the 
yoke of society.” 

Rudd revolved this interesting information in his 
mind during his tough march up the hill. And, 
when he finally joined the others on the summit, he 
realized all the more fully what a remarkable indi¬ 
vidual the Eskimo is. 

South, lay the berg-dotted reaches of Melville 
Bay. To the north, continued in a series of precipi¬ 
tous red cliffs, the same rocky fringe of land as the 
pinnacle on which he stood. To the west, spread 
blue sea, only sparsely marked with ice, and defined 
at the horizon by a low purplish haze which Captain 
Pike said was the shores of Ellsemere Land. 

Behind Rudd lay the ice cap. He gazed longest 
at this, realizing that it would be the hardest thing 
to describe when he got home again. Its gray- 
white desolation had none of the countable marks 
as did the sea with its icebergs. Its unbroken ex¬ 
panse of terrible blankness was utterly devoid of the 
shades and tints, the lights and shadows, that made 
42 


ESKIMOS 


the deep red cliffs so remarkable. It was simply a 
dead thing of immeasurable size. It was terrifying 
—gruesome! 

“Rock and ice—how can the Eskimos ever live 
here?” Rudd asked himself. “And when the 
months and months of darkness shut out even this 
dreadful bareness what do they do?” He turned to 
Captain Pike, who had wintered among them. 
“What do they do?” he asked in an almost beseech¬ 
ing voice. 

The Skipper laughed his booming choke and 
shrugged his thick shoulders. “Do!” he roared. 
“Why they do everything that’s worth doing.” And 
he boomed again. “They go hunting, and sing, and 
run races, and eat—bust me if they don’t each eat 
more than any two double-fisted sailormen; that is, 
when there’s enough to eat. Sometimes they go on 
starvation rations that would knock out a dog—boil 
up old skin clothes and get away with them as if 
they were the best Irish stew! They’re men, these 
little fellows are, mark my naked word, son!” 

But it took less than the Skipper’s speech to con¬ 
vince Rudd. On his way home he peeped in at one 
of the tupiks. It was empty except for a bed of 
skins, a tiny blubber lamp, and some odds and ends 
of rotten seal meat. This, he discovered, gave off 
the strong odor characteristic of all Eskimos. Even 
as he stood there inhaling it, he found it becoming 
43 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


less distasteful. Indeed, there came a time before 
Rudd escaped from the arctic’s fearsome clutches 
when a whiff of the same fragrance would have set 
his lean jaws dripping with desire for a taste of the 
rank meat. 

He turned to make his way back to the landing. 
By the next tupik stood a woman. She did not see 
Rudd, but was apparently waiting for some one to 
come by. Rudd followed her glance and spied the 
unfortunate Boggs picking his way through the 
rocky debris from the cliff above. The woman 
stepped out and met him; she took him gently by 
his sleeve and led him to her tent. 

“Aha,” thought Rudd, “so Boggsy’s got a sweet¬ 
heart!” 

Hoping to hear something he could tease the fire¬ 
man about after he returned aboard, Rudd waited 
until both had disappeared into the tupik, then 
stepped near enough to hear their conversation 
through the thin skin walls. 

To his amazement he heard a familiar voice say : 
“Well, fumble-thumbs, I thought I’d try you again.” 

It was the First Officer. 

“Honest, Mr. Menon,” whined Boggs, “I didn’t 
mean to start anything.” 

“Then what did you mean by saying you 'had 
cause’ when they pinched you in that fool Doctor’s 
room?” 


44 


ESKIMOS 


“Fool Doctor!” echoed Rudd to himself. “So 
that’s what he thinks in private about the man who 
backed him up!” 

“It was your claim, sir,” went on the frightened 
Boggs, “that we’d never get through the Northwest 
Passage as they’s aiming to do.” 

“They won’t,” growled Mr. Menon, “not in the 
Erik, anyway.” 

“That’s what you said, sir. And you wouldn’t 
tell me any more, except to offer me the money 
for-” 

“Cut that,” snapped the Officer. “I don’t want 
you to get in the habit of mentioning my offer, even 
in private. Now let’s have the real reason why you 
went into the Doctor’s room. Be quick about it. 
I don’t want to be seen here with you.” 

“To get a chart, sir. Honest, that was all. I jest 
wanted to see if what you said was so, that there 
wasn’t no way of getting by boat through to Alaska 
’cross the top of North America.” 

Rudd heard a quick movement and a thud as if 
the blubber lamp had been knocked over. “Thought 
I was a liar, did you!” he heard the Officer exclaim. 
And then Boggs burst from the tent at full speed and 
dashed headlong for the whaleboat on the beach. 



CHAPTER VI 
THE POLE STAR 


O N the deck of the Erik amidships just for¬ 
ward of the bridge stanchions was secured 
a large motor boat. She had been pur¬ 
chased by the government as a sort of auxiliary to 
the Erik. Shallow waters and narrow passages were 
sure to be encountered north which would necessi¬ 
tate a certain amount of pioneer work ahead of the 
main exploring party. 

The Pole Star, as the boat was named, was a 
forty-foot cabin launch built along the same lines as 
the Erik. In fact her heavy blunt and curving bow, 
her stocky beam, and her stout-timbered hull formed 
almost an exact miniature of the full-grown whaler. 
She was equipped with a powerful twelve-cylinder 
engine that would burn gasoline or kerosene. A 
stumpy mast forward permitted sail to be used in 
case the engine broke down, as well as providing a 
means of steadying the little craft in case the sea 
became too heavy for comfort. 

When Rudd reached the ship he found prepara¬ 
tions under way for launching the Pole Star as 
46 


THE POLE STAR 


soon as western waters were reached. The plan 
was to cross Baffin Bay to Lancaster Sound which, 
as the map shows, is the entrance to a confused mass 
of islands known as the Arctic Archipelago. 

Rudd’s feelings over what he had heard ashore in 
the Eskimo tent reached a climax when he saw how 
cordially Dr. Barlow greeted both Mr. Menon and 
Reggie on their return. Dr. Barlow was too fine 
a man to be a party to any such deviltry as Rudd sus¬ 
pected. And yet he was so plainly deceived by both 
rascals that Rudd felt perfectly hopeless about trying 
to approach him again. Boggs, of course, was out 
of the question as a source of information. He was 
too much cowed by the First Officer. Professor 
Deal was too absorbed in his scientific work, which 
had already begun with their arrival at Cape York. 
Norman was inclined to favor Mr. Menon as his 
superior officer. 

Only Captain Pike remained. Rudd felt that at 
least the Skipper would hear him through. Imme¬ 
diately after supper he went to the cabin, where the 
latter was poring over some charts. 

“May I see you alone for a few minutes, Cap¬ 
tain?” 

The Skipper eyed Rudd over his glasses. “Holy 
Bowlines!” he ejaculated with a twinkle, “are you 
having hallucinations, too?” Then his face became 
stern. “Out with it, lad,” he said gravely. 

47 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Rudd hesitated. “I don’t want to make trouble, 
sir,” he said apologetically, “but I have seen and 
heard things that I believe you should know.” 

“The Captain should know everything,” affirmed 
the Skipper, “if he wants to have a happy ship.” 

“It’s the success of the expedition, sir, that I’m 
after,” continued Rudd stoutly. “And I don’t be¬ 
lieve we shall get very far if one of your officers is 
bribing men to join him in some sort of plot.” 

“What sort of plot?” asked the Skipper quietly. 

“That’s what I don’t know, sir. I overheard 
Boggs tell Mr. Menon he was just trying to see the 
charts in Dr. Barlow’s room to find out whether 
we could get through the Northwest Passage or not. 
I am convinced Mr. Menon plans to lead a mutiny 
aboard the Erik and prevent our carrying out the 
cruise.” 

Captain Pike slowly stroked his whiskers as he 
was accustomed to do when pondering a knotty prob¬ 
lem. “Rudd, can I trust you?” 

“Certainly, sir.” 

“Then I will tell you that your guess is wrong. 
I have some men in my crew who have been sailing 
with me for years. They would go through hell 
for me. They have been offered one thousand dol¬ 
lars apiece, not to mutiny, but to obey implicitly any 
orders they shall receive.” 

“Receive from you, sir?” puzzled Rudd. 

48 


THE POLE STAR 


“Yes, orders from me. The mysterious thing 
about it is that I didn’t make the o*ffer. Mr. Menon 
made it. The scoundrel!” Captain Pike here 
brought his huge fist down on the table so hard 
the charts lifted several inches in the air. “Does 
he think he can persuade me to join him in any 
deviltry?” 

“But what could his plan be, sir?” 

“That I can’t fathom. Mutiny would have no 
purpose that I can imagine. The ship is not equipped 
for a successful gold search, or for trading pur¬ 
poses, though Mr. Menon might have an ingenious 
scheme that would put money into his pocket by 
exploiting the Eskimos. But even that would not 
account for his being able to offer some twenty thou¬ 
sand dollars cash to my men.” 

“How about piracy?” 

“Doesn’t pay these days. American destroyers 
would nab him before he had steamed a week. Any 
way you take it he hasn’t a chance to profit by 
seizing the Erik. I’m simply going to let him play 
into my hands and then lock him up for a prison 
sentence when we get back; this, despite he’s been 
a lawyer in his younger days and knows the ins 
and outs of courts pretty well.” 

“You’re not going to do anything about it then, 
sir?” asked Rudd in such a worried way that Cap- 
49 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

tain Pike broke into his old booming laugh and 
said: 

“Indeed I am, my boy. Many a Captain might 
have saved himself a pot of trouble by seeing the 
storm before it broke. Pm going to speed up Dr. 
Barlow in his preliminary investigation of Lancaster 
Sound. Then I’m going to call the men aft and 
explain conditions in terms they will understand. 
I shall go myself on the Pole Star for a look at the 
ice. The hands forward trust me. If I tell them 
we can get through they’ll go no matter if that 
penny villain, Menon, offers them a million. They 
know he’s been in trouble before and will probably 
get himself into jail again if he keeps on.” 

Rudd felt vastly comforted by the Skipper’s 
words. It seemed as if nothing could go wrong, 
with a man aboard like the old sea dog. All his 
life Captain Pike had been battling storms; he had 
fought mutinies; he had been shipwrecked; five 
times he had been given up for lost! No wonder he 
could keep a lap ahead of a “penny villain,” as he 
termed his First Officer. 

Not even the sight of Caverly perched on the 
Pole Star's deck could disturb Rudd’s new-found 
peace of mind. 

“Hello, Reggie!” he called. 

But Caverly scarcely noticed the hail. He was 
absorbed in something going on inside the motor 
50 


THE POLE STAR 


boat. He was gazing intently into her tiny engine 
room as if taking a lesson in motor operation. 

A few minutes later Mr. Menon appeared from 
within the boat and wiped his hands on a piece of 
waste. Spying Rudd he grinned somewhat sheep¬ 
ishly and remarked: “Nice boat, isn’t she? I was 
just showing young Caverly here what a neat engine 
installation she had.” 

Somehow his words did not ring true. 

Baffin Bay proved remarkably free from ice on 
the trip across. Thirty-six hours run over a glassy 
sea brought the Erik to the entrance of Lancaster 
Sound. Here again ice conditions proved so excel¬ 
lent that after a conference between Dr. Barlow and 
Captain Pike it was decided to continue in as far 
as open water would permit. 

Not until the northern point of Boothia Felix 
Peninsula was reached did any serious ice menace 
the Erik's progress. Amundsen had wintered here 
many years before and there was available a small 
and sheltered harbor in which the Erik might lie 
and replenish her supply of fresh water. 

The land here proved quite different from the 
Greenland coast. Though there were patches of ice 
cap on the elevations, the valleys and low shores 
were nearly devoid of snow. In sheltered spots with 
southern exposure, the green vegetation gave a most 
inviting appearance. 


5i 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Immediately after anchoring Captain Pike had 
steam put on the cargo engines, the booms rigged 
out, and the Pole Star hooked on for launching. 
Her great weight made the task a difficult and some¬ 
what dangerous one; but she was finally in the 
water looking trim and smart and ready for any 
duty. 

Dr. Barlow had charge of fitting out the brief 
expedition. As he and Captain Pike both favored 
a look at Victoria Strait to the southwest as well as 
McClintock Channel to the northwest, provisions 
for a week at least were necessary. 

The principal items of diet were to be pemmican 
and hard biscuit. Pemmican is a tinned mixture 
of beef and suet, with enough sugar and raisins to 
give it an agreeable flavor. Tea was to be the only 
beverage. Dr. Barlow explained to Rudd that it 
was highly preferable to coffee for hard work. Cof¬ 
fee is a brain stimulant and when taken in large 
quantities is damaging to a man’s digestion. Tea, 
on the other hand, is a heart stimulant. It will 
warm a man up in bitter weather with nearly the 
speed and efficiency of spirits. And it can be 
imbibed in almost unlimited amounts without greatly 
interfering with the explorer’s physical condition. 
Thus it is favored by all travelers in rigorous cli¬ 
mates, as well as those engaged in mountaineering. 

Captain Pike, Dr. Barlow, and Rudd were selected 
52 


THE POLE STAR 


as the party to go. Boggs begged to be put in 
charge of the engine. Secretly he was a little afraid 
to be left on the ship with Mr. Menon. The latter 
was to have gone too. Indeed, Captain Pike would 
have insisted upon it despite the severe cold the First 
Officer claimed to have. However, he could not 
very well order the would-be invalid on the trip 
after Dr. Barlow testified that any sort of exposure 
should be avoided by Mr. Menon until he felt better. 
The Skipper finally swallowed the situation by 
insisting that if Menon was too ill to go, he should 
be put on the sick list and Norman in command. 
This solution was put into effect. 

Caverly joined at the last minute. Rudd would 
have preferred his staying aboard. But he was so 
unpleasantly insistent iti reminding Dr. Barlow how 
much money his father had put up that he was finally 
permitted to go. It was some consolation to Rudd 
to feel that Reggie and Mr. Menon would be sep¬ 
arated for a few days. During the past week they 
had put in most of their time at long and suspiciously 
quiet talks. 

Five high-powered Winchester rifles and a thou¬ 
sand rounds of ammunition were put aboard last 
of all. 

“Fresh meat is our best bet against scurvy,” ob¬ 
served Dr. Barlow, “and if we don’t load up with 
53 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


musk ox and walrus meat before our return Fm very 
much mistaken/’ 

Boggs soon had the engine turning over, and 
opening his throttle full he let her go. The crew 
gave a cheer as the sturdy little Pole Star swung 
clear of the Erik and Norman, now in command, 
waved his cap from the bridge. The First Officer 
was nowhere in sight. If he cared about the sepa¬ 
ration he didn’t show it. 

“Certainly is an open season,” commented the 
Skipper as the boat sped south through the nearly 
ice-free waters west of Boothia Felix. “I believe 
we might have gone right ahead with the Erik after 
all.” 

But the Skipper was wrong, however, as events 
proved soon enough. Rudd had gone on watch near 
midnight while the others slept. Though the Pole 
Star had been anchored near the beach there was 
always danger that a large pan might drift by and 
carry her ashore. He had just walked forward to 
see that the anchor was holding well when a gust 
of wind struck him that nearly knocked him over¬ 
board. Nothing could have been more bewildering. 
A moment before the sea was calm. Now it was 
streaked with “willi-waws.” While hesitating 
whether to veer more chain or call the Skipper he 
saw the white froth of a squall not a thousand yards 
away and approaching rapidly. Before it were being 
54 


THE POLE STAR 

driven half a hundred deadly looking floes bearing 
down on the helpless Pole Star. 

“Turn out everybody!” yelled Rudd and fairly 
flung himself at the capstan. 

Ten minutes later all hands had got the anchor 
up and Boggs managed to start his engine humming 
just before the floes crashed into the boat. The 
Pole Star turned and scudded before the wind, 
which was a typical summer arctic gale. Due north 
lay a mountainous grounded iceberg a mile away. 
If she could reach the lee of that before swamping 
she had a chance for life. 


CHAPTER VII 


ABANDONED! 

HOUGH the sun shone brightly the fury 



of the wind increased every moment. Rudd 


took the helm and handled her under Cap¬ 
tain Pike’s direction. 

“Mind her now!” bawled the old fellow in his 
ear when the iceberg bore well on the beam. “Hard 
a-starboard!” Rudd spun his wheel just in time 
to round the little boat up into the quiet water 
behind the berg before a nasty knife-edged floe shot 
past. 

“Moor her!” ordered the Skipper. 

Rudd and Dr. Barlow leaped from the bow to a 
low jutting arm of the floating mass. With a camp 
ax the latter swiftly cut a ring in the compact ice 
and thrust in the painter that Boggs hove from the 
Pole Star . 

“There,” panted Rudd, “I guess that’ll hold her!” 
He prided himself on his knowledge of nautical 
knotting. 

“Hold her, yes,” assented Dr. Barlow. “But what 
will hold this berg?” 

“You mean it may go?” 


ABANDONED! 


The Doctor scrutinized the sky. “If I am not 
mistaken, we are in for a day or so of this weather. 
If any sort of swell makes up, the berg is likely to 
split and crush us. However, we wouldn’t last an 
hour out in that stew!” 

Rudd looked at the boiling waves and saw he 
was right. The gale was blowing almost dead from 
the northwest. Had the Pole Star attempted to 
weather it she would either have been swept upon 
the rocky shores of the peninsula or splintered to 
shreds by the driving ice. 

Caverly, as usual, had succumbed to seasickness 
when the launch had started to toss about. However, 
his fear for the future kept him from turning in. 

Captain Pike, with philosophical indifference, lit 
his pipe and waited for the weather to abate. 

“Bit of a blow, I’m thinking,” he told Dr. Bar- 
low, “but I’d hardly call this a storm.” 

The Doctor steadied himself against an icy rail 
and took a deep breath. “Captain Pike,” he pro¬ 
claimed in tones loud enough to wake the dead, “I 
hope some day it’ll blow hard enough to tear your 
blithering whiskers out by their roots!” 

“Oho!” boomed the Skipper, “so you don’t stom¬ 
ach this summer breeze we’re having?” 

“Summer breeze!” exclaimed Rudd, as a floe a 
fathom thick and weighing at least a ton crashed by 
not ten feet from where he stood. “If this is a 
7 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

summer breeze I hope I never live to see a winter 
gale!” 

A fragrance issued from the cabin hatch. “On 
my word!” cried the Doctor, “a good old pemmican 
stew! Hooray for Boggsy the chef!” 

The five then squeezed themselves into the little 
cabin and consumed vast quantities of stew, tea, and 
biscuit, topped off by a can of apple butter Dr. Bar- 
low drew from his small store of delicacies. Even 
Reggie recovered sufficiently to join the feast and 
seemed quite affable until Captain Pike lit his pipe 
containing a tobacco so violent that every one 
started coughing and sneezing. 

Boggs spent several hours overhauling his engine 
but was careful not to disable it as the mooring 
might have to be slipped at any moment. 

Rudd later awakened in his sleeping bag, which 
had been spread in one of the bunks, in time to hear 
the Skipper insisting that the Pole Star must be got 
clear at once. “This snow will make it impossible 
for us to avoid the ice.” 

“But where shall we go?” countered Dr. Barlow. 

“Run down the coast for some sort of cove until 
the weather clears,” declared the Skipper with 
finality. 

Rudd found the wind had almost disappeared. A 
worse outlook was present, however, in the shape 
bf a light snowfall that came down from the north 
58 


ABANDONED! 


on the remainder of the blow. The sky was overcast 
and already the land to the east was barely visible 
through the murk. 

“Start her up, Boggs,” commanded the Skipper. 
But just as Rudd was about to throw the painter 
clear, Boggs appeared at the engine hatch, his face 
smeared with grease and perspiration, and blowing 
like a whale. 

“Sorry, sir,” he panted, “but I been trying for 
half an hour to get a kick out of her. Ain’t no use. 
She’s dead as dead.” 

Boggs was right. All took turns cranking the 
engine. Every wire and pipe was gone over. But 
it simply would not start. There is nothing so dead 
in the world as a gas engine that won’t start. 

Every minute the weather was getting thicker. 
The tide had shifted the iceberg until the Pole Star 
was no longer fully protected from the drifting pans. 
Her position was becoming more perilous every mo¬ 
ment. If she was going to make the land, she would 
have to start in a hurry. Half an inch of wet snow 
covered her deck and the dark hills were now almost 
invisible. 

“Break out the canvas,” the Skipper ordered, “and 
be smart about it. We’re going to be in a pickle if 
we don’t hurry.” 

While Rudd tugged at the heavy baled mass of 
59 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


sailcloth, he was overtaken suddenly by a wild sus¬ 
picion. “Say, Boggs,” he asked of the fireman who 
worked at his elbow, “was Mr. Caverly down in the 
engine room yesterday?” 

“Sure. He slept down there. Said it was the 
only place he could keep warm. I spread my own 
bag on deck.” 

Rudd was startled. Could it be possible that Reg¬ 
gie had something to do with disabling the engine? 
He had surely received some sort of instruction 
from Mr. Menon. And yet it was inconceivable 
that the lad had sufficient physical courage to ven¬ 
ture anything so desperate as delaying the Pole 
Star's return. He himself must then become in¬ 
volved in the most hazardous situation imaginable— 
no less than a winter in the arctic with equipment 
far too limited to permit all of them to escape alive. 
The idea was preposterous! And yet Rudd, failing 
to convince himself, asked Boggs to take another 
look at the engine as soon as he could. “Might be 
in the magneto contacts,” he suggested. 

“Nothin’ doin!” came back Boggs with weariness. 
“I’ve tried everything!” 

The tiny spritsail gave less than four knots to the 
Pole Star. Yet even with this the beach came out 
suddenly ahead after about an hour’s run. Another 
hour or so of coasting brought her to an almost 
invisible break in the rocks. Captain Pike gave one 
60 


ABANDONED! 


professional squint at the opening and threw the 
helm down with a yank. Oars were broken out 
and the Pole Star was punted into the snuggest 
little harbor imaginable. Snow shrouded the hills 
and lay in a white blanket upon the graveled beach. 
But scarcely a breath of air stirred in the refuge 
that now guarded the expedition. Best of all, a 
growler or small berg lay grounded near the en¬ 
trance, thus blocking ingress of any threatening floe 
or pan that still might be savagely seeking the 
launch. 

Scarcely had the anchor splashed overboard than 
a new catastrophe was heralded by a muffled shout 
from the engine room. Boggs rushed on deck, wav¬ 
ing one hand wildly. Holding the carburetor cover 
aloft, he cried: 

‘The float’s gone! Dirty work I calls it—but 
it’s gone!” 

“Eh?” exclaimed Dr. Barlow. “How’s that?” 

“The carburetor float’s disappeared, sir! It was 
there yesterday. I cleaned it up myself. Stuck a 
little and I thought as how I’d jimmy her up a 
bit!” 

Boggs’ voluble protests that he wasn’t to blame 
were calmed by a thorough search first of the engine 
room, then of the entire boat. But Boggs was right. 
That indispensable part of the carburetor had mys- 
61 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

teriously disappeared and was nowhere to be found. 
Without it the engine was useless. 

“Does beat Billy Jiggs 1” was Captain Pike's com¬ 
ment. 

“Beats nothing—I told you so!" Rudd felt like 
telling him. “Just one more step in Menon’s plot 
to put this whole party on the everlasting blink!" 

But this was no time to trifle with theories about 
who did what and why. Dr. Barlow was first to 
size up the situation. 

“We’ve lost two days already," he said angrily. 
“If we stick here we hazard the whole summer’s 
work. Prevailing winds are from the north, so 
there isn’t a chance of our working back by sail. 
There’s just one way out." 

Rudd guessed it with a thrill before the Doctor 
could add: 

“Cut across country to the Erik. She is about 
fifty miles directly east from us. Traveling light 
two men might reach her. What do you say, Pike?" 

The Skipper shook his head. “Rough country 
this. And I’m thinking arctic travel isn’t a trick 
for any of this party to try right off." 

Rudd could contain himself no longer. 

“I’ll tackle it!" he popped out. “There’s no rea¬ 
son I can’t cover the distance in one good march. 
Why-" 

Dr. Barlow held up his hand. “Good work, Rudd. 

62 



ABANDONED! 


I knew you’d volunteer if I asked it; and I believe 
you’ve got it in you to do double that if necessary.” 
He turned to Captain Pike. “Here’s where youth 
counts, Pike. I selected this young man for the 
good and simple reason that, in addition to his 
likable nature, he has the strength of a young ox. 
He stood the punishment of football and the en¬ 
durance strain of crew. Soon as the weather clears 
I’d like to start him off.” 

“Not alone—no man travels alone in this coun¬ 
try.” 

Here Boggs stepped forward. “I’ll go too, sir.” 

“Thank you, Boggs,” nodded the Skipper. “With 
your sledging experience along the Labrador you 
ought to keep up pretty well with the Doctor’s young 
race horse here.” 

By the time Rudd and Boggs had their packs ready 
the snow gave evidence of easing up. As a final 
preparation both turned in for several hours of solid 
sleep. They awoke to find the visibility good and 
only an occasional flurry of white flakes to obscure 
the land east. 

“Avoid camping if possible,” the Doctor adjured 
them. “You can never tell in this part of the world 
what’s coming next. When you start to travel 
keep going.” 

They got off soon after six P. M. The sun which 

63 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


had come out of the clouds was then low enough 
to let the air thoroughly cool off and to freeze up 
the soft snow. As there were no snowshoes avail¬ 
able, heavy going would have meant great delay. 

The trip proved both longer and easier than was 
anticipated. By following a glacial valley arduous 
climbs were avoided. But this plan involved so 
circuitous a route that after ten hours’ march the 
sea on the other side of the land was not yet in 
sight. 

“Better camp here,” suggested the wornout Boggs. 

But Rudd remembered Dr. Barlow’s caution. 
“Let’s have a rest and a feed,” he compromised, “and 
try to make the ship this lap.” 

After a “mugup” of tea and cold pemmican they 
went on. Topping a rise the waters of Boothia Gulf 
came into view and a conical hill near which the 
ship had anchored was plainly visible to their left, 
not over five miles away. 

A dip in the land hid the sea for the rest of the 
journey. As they mounted the last crest overlook¬ 
ing “Erik Harbor,” as Dr. Barlow had christened 
their anchorage, Rudd’s tired mind began to con¬ 
jure up visions of flapjacks, seal steak smothered in 
onions, and a soft bunk good for about twelve hours’ 
solid sleep. In a burst of anticipation he broke into 
a run as the last incline sloped away under his feet. 

64 


ABANDONED! 


“First sight!” he called over his shoulder to 
Boggs. 

Then he stopped dead in his tracks. His joy died 
within him. He rubbed his eyes, opened his mouth 
to speak—and was silent. 

The ship had disappeared! 


CHAPTER VIII 
BEARS! 


W HEN a man is physically exhausted he 
has not the same control over his feel¬ 
ings as when normal. In consequence, 
Rudd’s disappointment at not finding the ship where 
she had been left, and where she was supposed to 
remain until the Pole Star returned, was akin to 
despair. Tears came into his wind-seared eyes. The 
hope that had sustained him through the long march 
was replaced by an oppressive discouragement that 
magnified his fatigue a hundred times. 

“What shall we do?” he asked of Boggs, who had 
finally dragged himself up and was standing speech¬ 
less beside him. 

“Do?” repeated Boggs vaguely. “Why they 
ain’t nothing to do. I’m done for. Can’t walk 
another step to save me.” 

“Don’t give up, old scout,” Rudd cheered him. 
“You can’t tell but what the ship had to leave her 
anchorage when the storm came and was blown 
somewhere down the coast. Surely she’ll be back 
as soon as possible.” 

“Nope,” Boggs wagged his head sadly. “I been 

66 


BEARS! 


expectin’ this all along. It’s just as Mr. Menon 
planned: get us off and then beat it with the ship. 
We’ll starve in a week!” The poor man’s voice 
broke. He was ready to surrender to Fate then and 
there. 

"Oh, snap out of it!” said Rudd angrily. "Are 
you going to lie down and die without a fight ? Be¬ 
sides, Captain Pike told me himself that it would be 
practically impossible for Mr. Menon to get away 
with seizing the ship. He would have nothing to 
gain by such a fool move.” 

While Boggs was not convinced by Rudd’s words, 
Rudd found his own courage bolstered by the neces¬ 
sity of keeping up his companion’s spirits. Besides, 
he could not yet believe that Mr. Menon had had 
the criminal audacity to steal the ship and abandon 
the party to their certain death from starvation and 
cold. 

Rudd’s natural impulse was to go down and see 
if any message had been left. Surely Norman would 
have done what he could to have dropped some hint 
of why the Erik had gonb. On the other hand, 
unless he were a willing party to the plot, he must 
have been overcome by surprise and imprisoned dur¬ 
ing the departure. 

A groan from Boggs changed Rudd’s mind. 
"What say we go up that next hill and see if she’s 
anywhere in sight?” he suggested. 

67 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“Can’t walk a single step,” was Boggs’ plaintive 
reply. “Just leave me, Mr. Winters. I ain’t got 
nothin’ to live for anyway.” 

“All right, old scout,” said Rudd cheerily. “I’ll 
leave you, but not to die.” 

Whereupon he set about making camp as best he 
could out of the small gear they had brought along. 
The tiny primus stove, a compressed air design that 
burned kerosene, he set up and filled with lumps 
of fresh-water ice for tea. He spread their single 
piece of canvas on a bare spot of ground and rigged 
a blanket shirt to make a small windbreak against 
the light but chilling breeze that came over the icy 
stretches to the north of them. 

“I’m going for a climb now to see if I can spot 
the ship. Bet ten cents she’s just around the cor¬ 
ner,” he said. 

Boggs’ only answer was to throw himself down 
with a deep sigh and close his eyes as if forever. 
He gave no heed to the fact that if he slept as he 
was he risked freezing to death. His boots were 
soaked through from the mushy snow, his clothing 
damp from perspiration. And the long struggle 
across the peninsula had so lowered his vitality that 
he stood little chance of resisting the cold while 
sleeping. Rudd felt thoroughly desperate. Yet, 
since he had the moral courage to keep going, his 
was the responsibility to see that the other man was 
68 


BEARS! 


not allowed to lose his life unnecessarily. Almost 
more important than food at this moment was the 
absolute necessity of spurring Boggs to a manly 
battle against the fearful complications in which the 
two found themselves. Moreover, if the ship had 
gone for good, it was vital that word be got back 
to the Pole Star at the earliest possible moment in 
order that every ounce of food and fuel be con¬ 
served against the terrible days ahead. 

The first few steps toward the other hill told 
Rudd how far his own strength had been depleted. 
He ached in every joint. His feet were sore and 
blistered from the long hours in soaked footgear. 
His back pained. His shoulders chafed from their 
pack straps. And the tump line he had used part of 
the time had so stiffened the muscles of his neck 
that he had to turn his whole body when he wished 
to look around. 

From the summit there was a most excellent view 
of the coast both north and south. The sea and the 
land spread in a multicolored panorama at his feet. 
But the colors were all cold ones—blues and blacks 
and whites, with only an occasional patch of dirty 
brown where the land cropped through. Strain his 
bloodshot eyes as he might Rudd saw no vestige of 
the ship. 

He had brought along a pair of small pocket 
binoculars. A fall on the first day out had broken 
69 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


one of their prisms. However, it was possible by 
shutting one eye to get a fair magnification in what 
field remained. But nothing that even looked like 
a piece of wreckage was visible in the vast arctic 
desolation. 

“Might as well take a look down by the anchorage 
then,” he muttered. “Maybe they had the decency to 
leave us a little grub at any rate.” 

Rudd trained his glass on the beach where he 
knew some of the crew had gone ashore and set up 
a small forge on the day of arrival. Except for a 
dark patch where the fire had been there was no sign 
that human beings had ever visited the place. 

“What the Sam Hill!” 

A shiver ran through Rudd’s tired body. He had 
seen something moving on the beach. At first it 
looked like a piece of dirty ice slowly sliding into the 
sea. Then it took on a semblance of a ghost. But 
ice and ghosts don’t stalk about on cold arctic 
beaches in the middle of the day. 

“Bears!” 

All his life Rudd had longed to see a real polar 
bear. Those in the zoo were such sloppy, sluggish 
creatures that he wanted to have a look at a wild 
one in his native haunts just to prove they could 
have some real pep under the right conditions. 

His thrill soon gave way to dismay when he 
realized how lacking he was in firearms. A rifle 
70 


BEARS! 


would have been too heavy to have lugged all the 
way. His and Boggs’ only weapon was a small .38 
automatic revolver brought along for defense only 
in case wolves should be met. Captain Pike had 
declared bears would not be encountered along here 
this time of the year. 

Rudd drew the small gun from its holster. Its 
magazine was full and he had twenty additional 
rounds in his belt. But the bullets looked so insig¬ 
nificant compared to the huge animals on the beach 
that Rudd’s heroism oozed a bit. If the bears proved 
to be in a hostile mood there was no reason to sup¬ 
pose they would not attack both the men. And even 
if they were only examining the strange smells and 
tracks left by the expedition it was likely they would 
resent intrusion by the two explorers. 

The first thing to do was to warn Boggs. If the 
poor wretch awoke to find himself looking into the 
dripping jaws of a full-grown polar bear he would 
probably die of fright. A chuckle escaped Rudd as 
he pictured such a scene. 

He made most of the descent at a trot. Danger 
spurred him on. Also there was the fact that the 
wind might shift any minute and give the bears 
notice that they were not alone. 

To Rudd’s horror he found the camp empty. He 
was afraid to call too loudly for Boggs. The bears 
might hear him. That the fireman had left precipi- 
7i 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


tately was evidenced by the primus which had been 
extinguished by the tea boiling over. At first Rudd 
thought Boggs had seen the bears and become fright¬ 
ened. Then he saw footprints in the snow leading 
directly toward the beach. Unusual distance be¬ 
tween each track showed that Boggs must have 
started off at a run whatever his destination. He 
was alone and unarmed! 

“The poor boob!” exclaimed Rudd. “Has he 
gone insane?” 

There was not a moment to be lost. Boggs must 
by this time have reached the bears. Indeed, they 
might have attacked him already. A polar bear will 
not eat human flesh unless well starved. But he will 
not hesitate to do murder with one blow of his 
powerful and sharp-clawed paws. 

Rudd soon saw that by following Boggs’ tracks 
he would be discovered by the bears before he could 
get close enough to them to take advantage of a 
surprise attack. While they were not visible from 
this point, he had marked their bearing by a large 
boulder emerging from the drifts just above the low 
shelf that limited the inner edge of the beach. 

With the wind in his face, Rudd ran half crouch¬ 
ing until he could fling himself breathless and with 
palpitating heart in the lee of the rock. The strain 
on his whole body had been so great that it was some 
minutes before he could recover sufficient strength to 
72 


BEARS! 


struggle to his feet. He could hear a deep-chested 
snuffling not far from him, audible proof that the 
bears were still unaware of his approach. 

Then, without warning, the air was split by the 
most unearthly scream he had ever heard. His heart 
stood absolutely still for at least five seconds, and 
he could feel the hair on the back of his neck rise 
ticklingly under his blanket shirt. 

“Stop!” shrieked a voice. “Stop, I tell ye, or 
I’ll—” the protests broke off into another scream 
that was blood-curdling. 

As Rudd scrambled up to have a look his brain 
painted a picture of the helpless Boggs being torn 
limb from limb by at least a dozen long-fanged bears. 
In fact so frightful was the carnage suggested that 
Rudd could scarcely believe his eyes when he peeped 
over the upper edge of the boulder. 

This boulder was balanced on the brink of a ver¬ 
tical bank about ten feet above the level of the beach. 
Boggs was backed up against this bank shaking in 
every limb. His face was the color of raw putty. 
Tears ran down his cheeks. His hands were out¬ 
stretched beseechingly, and spasmodically he gave 
vent to hoarse sounds that were alternately pleading 
and threatening. 

In front of Boggs, not ten yards away, stood a 
huge polar bear. On either side of her was a half- 
grown cub. The bear’s long neck was stretched 
73 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


toward the frantic Boggs and she sniffed loudly as 
if trying to find out what manner of strange animal 
it was that gave forth such extraordinary sounds. 

“Stop! Don’t! You—you— Vll kill you!” 

croaked Boggs in impotent terror. 

Rudd dared not tell his comrade how near help 
was for fear of distracting the bear’s attention. If 
she came close enough Rudd would have a chance to 
kill her despite the small size of his weapon. If he 
only wounded her, as would no doubt be the case if 
he fired at this distance, she would likely attack and 
probably kill both of them. 

Slowly, deliberately, the bear advanced. The cubs, 
also sniffing loudly, followed cautiously at her heels. 
When she was not ten feet from the bank Boggs’ 
fear turned suddenly to a ghastly hysteria. His 
screams rose to such a pitch that the cubs whimpered 
and growled. He waved his arms in the air and 
took a step toward the bear. This sign of hostility 
aroused her to action. She rose on her hind legs to 
a full ten feet and emitted a thundering roar that 
seemed to shake the ground. Towering above the 
hapless Boggs she waved her massive paws in a way 
that said as plainly as words: “Now, you wretch, I’m 
going to finish you off with one blow!” 

Rudd’s moment for action had come. Raising 
his automatic cautiously he rested upon the boulder, 
took careful aim at the bear’s heart, and pulled the 
74 


BEARS! 


trigger. Instantly the great animal clawed at her 
breast. Then she gave one throaty gulp, tottered, 
and fell back with a thud stone-dead. The two cubs 
did not wait to find out what had befallen their 
unfortunate mother, but dashed headlong down the 
beach and disappeared into the fastnesses of the bare 
hills beyond. Boggs stood transfixed. So far as he 
was concerned it was as if a bolt of lightning had 
come down from heaven and struck dead the wild 
animal that but a moment before would have eaten 
him alive. His expression was that of a man who 
has just awakened from a nightmare. 

“Pretty good shot that, eh?” laughed Rudd from 
above him. 

Boggs spun around; and, to Rudd’s amazement, 
presented a face smeared with what appeared to be 
molasses. More curious even than this, he did not 
mention the bear but pointed tremblingly down the 
beach and wailed: 

“Look what they’ve left us—look—from the Erik 
—look!” 

Rudd then saw for the first time half buried in 
the blanketing snow, the confirmation of his worst 
fears. 


CHAPTER IX 


TREACHERY 

VERY substantial cache of supplies had 



been left by the Erik. There were at least 


sixty cases of tinned and preserved foods 
of various kinds. Among them were four barrels of 
salt beef and two score five-gallon tins of kerosene. 
Several cases of pemmican had been broken open by 
the bears; also two large buckets of molasses. Ap¬ 
parently the whole cache had been in process of 
demolition when Boggs arrived. Splintered wood 
lay about, scattered by mighty blows from the ani¬ 
mals’ paws. Small cans of vegetables were rolled 
into the snow. One keg marked “pickles,” weighing 
at least fifty pounds, had been picked up and hurled 
into the water. 

“How in thunderation did you happen to come 
down here when you didn’t have any gun?” asked 


Rudd. 


Boggs, though still shaken by his harrowing expe¬ 
rience, managed to get out that he thought he had 
sighted some of the crew. “Saw a thing moving 
about,” he said, “and allowed as how one of the 
fellers was in the same fix with us. And when I 


76 


TREACHERY 


heard them cases being moved around I was sure he 
was getting supper ready or something. So I just 
lit out. I jumped right down in the middle of them 
critturs—nearly landed on the madam’s back!” 

“But why didn’t she lam you then and there?” 
asked Rudd in some amusement, despite Boggs’ nar¬ 
row escape. 

“Well, she seemed to have her nose in that there 
molasses tin so she sorta let me be till she was 
finished.” 

“But she didn’t, though,” persisted Rudd. 

“Jigger^ no! Soon as ever I’d start to beat it 
she’d stick up her head and growl in a way I took as 
orders to stay. So I stayed. An’ when you come 
along she’d just finished the sweets and was about 
to amuse herself with a few parlor tricks over my 
corpse.” 

“Well, she didn’t get you,” laughed Rudd, “so 
what’s the diff.? Our job now is to list this stuff 
for the Skipper, get a rest, and start back as soon as 
possible. Of course, we’ve got to make a good 
search for any message that may have been left, 
but in this mess we’re not likely to find it easily.” 

“How come they to leave us grub, do you sup¬ 
pose?” asked Boggs thoughtfully. “Ed think that 
devil would jest as soon let us die now as later if 
he was going to swipe the ship.” 

Rudd shook his head. The mystery was deeper 

77 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


than ever. Certainly if Mr. Menon committed the 
grave crime of stealing the Erik after bribing the 
crew to mutiny, he surely would not have incurred 
the extra risk of giving the deserted expedition 
means by which they might survive. Escape to the 
south was indubitably perilous, yet by no means im¬ 
possible. And if but one man in the Pole Star party 
succeeded in reaching civilization, Mr. Menon would 
certainly be hanged. 

“Doubtless they don’t plan to come back,” agreed 
Rudd, “or they wouldn’t have left us all this stuff. 
But why they should ever give us even this fighting 
chance to live long enough to bring the law on them 
is too deep for me.” 

Boggs suddenly leaned over and snatched some¬ 
thing out of the snow. “How ’bout this, sir?” He 
held aloft a ragged envelope. Rudd grabbed for it 
and then stopped with a grimace. 

“Empty!” he wailed. 

The envelope evidently had held some message. 
It was addressed to Captain Pike, under whose name 
was the inscription: 

“To be opened by no one but the Skipper.” 

“I don’t believe Mr. Menon would have had the 
impudence to call him ‘Skipper,’ commented Rudd. 
“Looks to me as if there’s the hand of some one else 
in this mystery.” 

Prompted by the utmost curiosity both began a 

78 


TREACHERY 


systematic search of the cache for some vestige of 
the note that must have been inclosed in the envelope. 
Their efforts were rewarded by only two scraps of 
paper, both written upon. On one was the half 
sentence: “the Erik has unfortunately been 
crushed —” on the other were only the words “terri¬ 
ble fater 

“Looks as if they had either got into some sort of 
trouble with the ship,” concluded Rudd after study¬ 
ing the remnants; “or else this is part of a fake 
message composing a lie that excuses the ship’s de¬ 
parture.” 

“But there ain’t no reason for them leaving food 
if the ship was busted up,” reasoned Boggs very 
truly. “They’d either get blown out to sea and all 
bust up together; or else they’d have left some men 
here to look after the cache. It’s scullduggery plain 
enough, and this what we’ve found is just a sample 
of a big lot of guff they expected us to swallow.” 

Rudd was of a mind to accept Boggs’ version of 
the note except that he could not yet reconcile any 
sort of criminality on the part of the First Officer 
with the undeniable humanity of his leaving a good 
supply of provisions where he knew they would be 
found. 

“There’s nothing to do now but camp and get our¬ 
selves into shape for the trek back to the Pole Star/’ 
79 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

asserted Rudd. “You turn to and skin the bear 
and I’ll rig up a shelter.” 

So while Boggs was busy stripping the fine pelt 
off the animal, Rudd built four walls out of packing 
cases. Over the top he spread a tarpaulin which 
must have covered the cache at first. It was badly 
torn in places where the bears had raked it off, but 
by means of palm and needle, which he carried in 
his knapsack, temporary patches were made. He 
added heavy boulders to weight the improvised roof 
in case another gale should arise. 

Boggs brought the skin over just as Rudd had 
ingeniously arranged a door by taking a smaller case 
from near the bottom of one of the walls. 

“Makes a fine bed,” said Boggs, with a much 
pride as if he had shot the animal himself. “I’ve 
slept on ’em before. It’s the only large hide except 
the musk ox that can be used without having its 
hair come out all over everything.” 

“Sure will,” assented Rudd. “Now you gather 
some ice and cut us off a steak and we’ll have a real 
feed. None of this tinned stuff when there’s fresh 
meat on hand. I’ll go back after the stove.” 

“Steak nothing!” spouted Boggs. “Tongue and 
brains is what we want. Finest bits you’ve ever 
tasted. Only remember, the liver of a bear is poison 
and the hanks is tough.” 

Half an hour later, filled to bursting with stew and 
80 


TREACHERY 


soup, both stretched themselves on the deliciously soft 
skin. For twenty-four hours neither had slept, and 
pure muscular exhaustion had numbed their nerves 
to every anxiety about the future. 

“Suppose them bears come back,” suggested 
Boggs. 

“Let ’em come,” murmured Rudd sleepily. “They 
could bite my foot off and I’d never know it!” 

The sun had got well around into the north before 
either awoke. Boggs stirred first and started the 
stove. By the time the water was boiling he had 
sliced up some more of the bear meat and was about 
to drop it in when Rudd came to and stopped him. 

“How about a can of beans?” 

“Is it all right to take ’em?” asked Boggs eagerly. 

“It has to be. I can’t look a piece of bear meat 
in the face after that gorge we just had,” declared 
Rudd with emphasis. 

Boggs heartily agreed. 

Before packing up they made a careful count of 
the cache and listed them as follows: 

20 cases tinned meats 

18 cases pemmican 
4 cases preserved milk 
i crate dehydrated vegetables 
200 gallons of kerosene, in 5-gallon tins 
1 keg of pickles 

10 damaged receptacles of molasses, butter, and 
sugar. 

81 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“It’s funny they didn’t leave us any ammunition,” 
observed Rudd, “we’ll never last on this preserved 
stuff. If we don’t die of starvation, we’ll all have 
scurvy before the winter is over.” 

“Maybe they figured we’d shoot—” suggested 
Boggs, “shoot them murderers if they was to come 
back.” 

“Sounds reasonable,” began Rudd and broke off 
suddenly. “Hey, what’s this ?” 

He held up an envelope similar to that which had 
been addressed to Captain Pike. Though damp with 
snow it was quite undamaged and evidently con¬ 
tained a folded paper. It was sealed and bore the 
legend: 

“For Mr. R. Caverly.” 

“Ye gods and little fishes!” blurted Rudd. “They 
certainly had their nerve to leave a sealed note for 
one of our party, particularly when Mr. Menon knew 
I had been watching Reggie’s friendliness with 
him.” 

“How about opening it?” said Boggs. “Maybe 
we’ll find out where the ship is.” 

“Sure,” said Rudd and began to tear the envelope’s 
corner. Abruptly he stopped. The realization had 
flashed into his mind that Mr. Menon was not such 
a fool as this. If he were going to leave some word 
for Reggie that would permit the lad to gain any 
82 


TREACHERY 


advantage over the rest of the party, he surely would 
take a more secret means than an obvious note that 
Reggie might be made to relinquish by force. 

“Guess I’ll wait,” Rudd explained. “I don’t be* 
lieve there’s anything we could get from this letter 
unless we watch Reggie read it. His behavior might 
then prove a clue to what’s up. Anyway it’s a good 
one on him if he was planning to help Mr. Menon 
pull off his coup and then got left behind. What?” 

“Say, young fellow,” grinned Boggs, “ye’ve got 
a mind like Sherlock Holmes!” 

The start was made under lowering skies with 
every evidence of more snow. But it was important 
to get back to the others, and as more food could be 
taken along, a night camp could be made if necessary. 
Boggs put together a small sledge from one of the 
cases, which enabled them to take half the bearskin 
and some of the frozen flesh. 

The return was without incident except that Boggs 
nearly broke his neck down a small glacial tongue 
they had to cross. He was marching ahead of Rudd 
dragging the sledge. Suddenly he disappeared. 
Rudd leaped forward and almost dived into a cre¬ 
vasse which had been concealed by a bridge of rotten 
snow. Luckily the towing lanyard was wrapped 
around Boggs’ wrist. The sledge caught on a small 
pinnacle and left him dangling in mid-air, the dark 
and cavernous depths of the yawning well below 
83 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


him. Rudd quickly cut a pair of foot braces in the 
ice and hauled Boggs out by a straight back lift. 

“Jumpin’ cats!” groaned Boggs when he scram¬ 
bled on to the snow. “What’s a-goin’ to hit me 
next?” 

“Next!” laughed Rudd. “If we all had luck like 
yours there wouldn’t be a poor man among us.” 

“Gee, and ye’d have to have luck if the devil was 
as hot on your trail as he is on mine!” lamented the 
calamity-stricken Boggs with a sad wag of his 
head. 

They found the Pole Star in her little cove where 
they had left her. There were no signs of life about 
her. 

“Boat ahoy!” shouted Rudd. The tiny flattie was 
tied up astern of the Pole Star, without which it 
would be impossible to reach her. 

“Heads up!” bawled Boggs. “We’re back.” 

But no answer. The boat lay silent and deserted. 
No welcoming sound or movement came from her 
cabin or deck. 

“Say,” said Boggs in an awed voice, “my luck’s 
held twice; this is the third crack. We’re hoodooed, 
and now’s the end of everything. They’ve gone, too, 
an’ left us—just us.” 

“Fiddlesticks!” snapped Rudd, and began taking 
off his boots. “I’m going to swim out to her.” 

“What!” shouted the horrified Boggs. 

84 


CHAPTER X 


NO ESCAPE 

R UDD had every intention of making the 
swim if necessary. While the water was 
" icy and surfaced with half an inch of snow 
slush, he felt his vitality would enable him to cover 
the hundred yards to the flattie before he should 
become too numbed. From the flattie the Pole Star 
could be reached with ease. 

However, he was quick enough to grasp a fact 
the slower Boggs had not yet noted. If every one 
were gone how did it happen the flattie had been left 
at the Pole Star? Some one must be aboard and 
hiding below, without doubt watching the new¬ 
comers. If this person saw Rudd starting to swim 
out, whoever it was would undoubtedly make his 
presence known in time to save the lad from his 
hazardous plan. 

‘Til have a change of clothes when I get aboard,” 
Rudd announced, in a voice loud enough to be heard 
on the motor boat. 

“ ’Tain’t possible!” groaned Boggs. “A man’d 
never live in that ice water.” 

85 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“Pooh! I’ll be out there before I’ve had a chance 
to chill through!” 

But Rudd’s bluff was without results. The Pole 
Star lay still and dead. The flattie swung around 
her with a passing breath of air. Even the dark 
water seemed lifeless with its reflection of the leaden 
sky overhead. The mist and snow-shrouded hills 
were a fit background for tragedy. 

“Here goes!” said Rudd with a shiver. He waded 
out several steps then flung himself heroically into 
the icy bath. First shock of it struck him like a 
blast of dynamite. Every nerve in his body leaped 
to the impact of terrific cold. His muscles fairly 
burned with energy so violently imparted to them by 
the biting stimulation of the iced brine. 

Rudd fully realized he must make the best of this 
first burst of strength. Although he was striking 
out with the vicious speed of a trained swimmer he 
already felt the numbing effect of the cold. His 
shoulder joints began to lose sensation. His arms 
became heavy, lifeless lumps of dead flesh and bones. 
His lungs seemed bound by invisible chains that 
drew tighter at every stroke. 

Poor Boggs stood on the beach and wrung his 
hands. Rudd had become his one hope of escape 
from the terrors of the arctic. If anything befell 
his resourceful companion it would mean the end of 
Boggs’ already very shaky confidence in the future. 

86 


NO ESCAPE 


At last he saw Rudd reach the flattie. That the 
boy was pretty well done up was evidenced by the 
unsuccessful effort he made to haul himself aboard. 

“Heave 'round ! 0 Boggs suddenly bawled. “You 
got ’em, mate!” 

This encouragement had the desired effect. With 
a desperate yank Rudd hauled his frozen body high 
enough to rest it upon the flattie’s stern. A moment 
later he was aboard her, pounding his thighs and 
swinging his arms like a windmill around his icicled 
head. 

As soon as he felt the blood come tingling back 
into his hands and feet, he pulled the flattie ahead 
and boarded the Pole Star. He was positive he 
would find some one aboard. Else how did the flat- 
tie happen to be there? She was the only means of 
landing. 

The cabin was empty. To his shout no one an¬ 
swered from the dark engine room. But just as he 
was about to climb back into the cabin for a change, 
he noticed something white on the engine room lad¬ 
der. Leaning down he saw it was a burnt-out candle. 
The wick had fallen over in a dripping pool of 
paraffln. 

“Gorry!” he exclaimed. “Might have burned the 
boat up. I wonder—” He struck a match. “Well, 
I’ll be—” His words were cut short by a shiver 
not of cold but dismay. At his feet, sprawled over 
87 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


the engine, lay the body of Reginald Caverly! Blood 
trickled from a wound in his temple and ran in a 
ghastly crimson smear down his pale face. 

Rudd drew back horrified. “Has he killed him¬ 
self ?” was his first shuddering thought. Caverly’s 
suffering on the trip up and during the storm on the 
Pole Star might well have led him to commit such a 
dreadful deed. Rudd felt the lad’s wrist. There 
was no pulse. 

“Poor Boggs!” Rudd could not help muttering. 
“He’ll never stand this latest tragedy.” Then Rudd 
realized how cold he was himself. A sudden weak¬ 
ness came over him. He found to his surprise he 
could just drag himself clear of the engine room. 
On deck the raw air revived him sufficiently to per¬ 
mit him to make his way to the cabin where he got 
out of his dripping breeches and into a warm outfit. 
He started the primus and put on tea to boil. Then 
he returned for Reggie. “Can’t leave the poor fel¬ 
low there,” he told himself in an effort to overcome 
the loathing he felt at having to touch a dead body. 

Despite Caverly’s light weight Rudd had consid¬ 
erable difficulty getting him out of the tiny hatch. 
When he finally succeeded he again experienced the 
faintness he had felt on his first visit. “Why, that’s 
not my swim making me ill!” he exclaimed. “Must 
be something down there.” He stuck his nose over 
88 


NO ESCAPE 


the hatch. “By Jove, it is!” The acrid fumes of 
an upset fire-extinguisher bit into his nostrils. 

With this discovery he tore back Reggie’s shirt 
and put his ear to the white chest. “Alive!” he 
shouted, and hustled his shipmate’s unconscious 
form aft. In the cabin he drew off Reggie’s boots 
and rolled him into a bunk. Exactly what medical 
treatment was needed he did not know. The temple 
wound he now saw was but a slight cut, done no 
doubt when Reggie fell. 

“By the way,” Rudd wondered, “what might he 
have been doing down there, anyway?” Rudd’s 
delight at finding his shipmate alive was short-lived 
when he realized how suspicious the boy’s presence 
in the engine room would look to any one who knew 
the circumstances of the trip. 

With the aid of a lantern he inspected the engine. 
He immediately found the extinguisher and threw 
it on deck. By opening the hatch full width the 
noxious fumes escaped and pure air flooded the 
compartment. 

“Aha!” Rudd exclaimed, when he saw a wrench 
and pliers lying by the carburetor. “Been trying to 
fix her, have you?” 

He leaned over for a better look, and lifted the 
carburetor cover which seemed loose. To his amaze¬ 
ment the missing float was there and in place! 

“The lying scoundrel!” blurted Rudd. 

89 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Then his brain began to work full speed. He 
already had the note addressed to Reggie. And now 
he had this final damning bit of evidence to convict 
the rogue with. If used circumspectly, the two 
might be combined to earn a full confession of the 
mystery. 

A shout interrupted him. Sticking his head 
through the hatch he saw Captain Pike and Dr. Bar- 
low rounding the little point of land at the northern 
edge of the cove. 

“Hello, boys, are you back?” called the skipper. 

“Just are!” admitted Boggs in a tone not too loud 
to hide the melancholy of his soul. 

Rudd lost not a second jumping into the flattie and 
pulling for the beach. He got there just in time 
to hear Boggs say: “And she was at least fifteen 
feet high but I was a-goin’ to crack her over the 
head when Mr. Winters came alone with his gun and 
beat me to it!” 

“Yes,” added Rudd, “Boggs’ cruelty to bears 
ought to be reported to the S. P. C. A. Why, he was 
positively swearing at the lady when I arrived!” 

“But the ship?” interposed Dr. Barlow. “Did 
you get the carburetor float?” 

“She’s left us!” cried Boggs before Rudd could 
speak. “Left us to die up here in this ice box! 
Left us—” He broke off into a flood of nautical 
90 


NO ESCAPE 


profanity that left no doubt in the minds of his 
hearers that the Erik had certainly gone home. 

“Oh, she’ll be back,” boomed the Skipper. “That 
idiot Menon probably persuaded young Norman to 
take her out when the gale came on and he’ll bring 
her back soon as the weather gives him a chance.” 

“But this letter?” protested Rudd, and drew the 
empty envelope from his pocket. “What do you 
make of that?” Rudd was determined not to launch 
all his thunderbolts at once. 

“Just explanation,” averred Dr. Barlow who, like 
Captain Pike, refused to accept Rudd’s theory that 
the Erik had gone for good. 

Rudd next presented the scraps of paper on which 
were the fateful fragments, “the Erik has, unfor¬ 
tunately been crushed—” and “terrible fate,” 

“That’s all right,” laughed Dr. Barlow. “The 
gale must have brought some heavy floes into the 
harbor and pushed her towards the beach. To avoid 
being wrecked Menon took her out. The ‘terrible 
fate’ part of it refers to what might happen to us 
if the Erik couldn’t get back and we had no food.” 

“That’s the Chief Engineer’s handwriting, too,” 
put in the Captain. “He’s the only one who’d dare 
call me ‘Skipper.’ And, moreover, he wouldn’t have 
written if everything wasn’t all right. He’s been like 
a brother to me for forty years.” 

Rudd’s face fell. What could he do to make these 
9i 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


men realize that they were being tricked? Surely, 
they must give credence to his irrefutable proof of 
Reggie’s guilt. 

As if reading his thoughts, Dr. Barlow suddenly 
changed the subject with, “Where’s our good mate, 
Reggie?” 

“ ‘Good mate!’ ” echoed Rudd aghast. “Why-^ 
Why-” 

“Yes,” explained the Doctor. “When we started 
after caribou to-day, he volunteered to put in his 
time on the engine. Said he could fix it, he was 
sure.” 

“He fixed it, too,” Rudd said, quietly. “He found 
the float.” 

“Hooray!” shouted Boggs, “then we can run 
round to the cache.” 

“I thought he might,” went on Dr. Barlow. 
“He’s got determination, that boy.” 

Rudd turned away hurt. What was the use of 
trying to go on when his seniors seemed deter¬ 
mined not to perceive anything but good in those 
who were so obviously plotting disaster. Then he 
abruptly realized that what he had said to Boggs 
about not giving up without a fight applied to him¬ 
self as well. Also Reggie must have medical aid 
at once. 

“Before you go to him,” he told Dr. Barlow, after 
explaining Reggie’s accident, “I want to ask you 
92 


NO ESCAPE 


about this other note we found at the cache addressed 
to Reggie. I suggest it might be opened in the pres¬ 
ence of some of us to make sure it conceals nothing 
we ought to hear.” 

Dr. Barlow gave Rudd an angry look. “Really, 
Rudd, you are the most suspicious young cuss I’ve 
ever known. If it weren’t for your undeniable 
courage, I’d say that you were jealous of your com¬ 
panion’s ability to make something out of himself 
despite his physical inferiority.” 

“It’s not that, and you know it, sir!” blurted Rudd. 
“And I believe the time is coming shortly when you 
will take back what you imply about me.” 

“Come, come, old man,” the Doctor soothed him. 
“There may be something in your detective ability 
after all. For your sake, I’ll see that Reggie reads 
the note before us.” 

Reggie’s illness proved to be only a temporary, 
and by no means a serious, touch of asphyxiation 
from the fumes he had encountered in the engine 
room. His first words when he came to were in 
exultation at finding the float. 

“Don’t know why we didn’t see it the other day,” 
he said weakly. 

“Where’d ye find it?” asked Boggs. 

Reggie hesitated the fraction of a second—a fact 
not overlooked by Rudd who was watching him 
93 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


closely. “Why—why, right in the box of spare parts 
where it was supposed to be.” 

“Humph,” growled Boggs. “That’s queer—I 
took every part out of that box the day we lost 
the float.” 

“I did, too,” Rudd wanted to add, but held his 
tongue. 

“Never mind that,” interrupted Dr. Barlow. 
“The float’s found, and we are your debtors, Cav- 
erly. Now we want to ask you a favor. Rudd 
found a note addressed to you at the cache left by 
the Erik. There was also one for the Captain, but 
bears destroyed its content. Because of the perilous 
situation in which we find ourselves we are anxious 
to learn what your note contains.” 

Reggie took the envelope and looked at the four 
faces before him. Boggs and Rudd were undis- 
guisedly hostile, each for his own private reasons. 
The Skipper had lit his pipe and was beaming rather 
indifferently over the smoky bowl. Dr. Barlow 
smiled encouragingly and gave every evidence of 
confidence that what the note contained would only 
confirm his faith in the boy. 

“Is—is there any hurry about it?” asked Reggie 
lamely, and much to Rudd’s delight. 

“Hurry?” Dr. Barlow seemed not to understand. 
“Open it, lad, and let’s find out what the game is.” 

Reggie’s face blanched. Confronted with the 
94 


NO ESCAPE 


necessity of opening the letter he gave every evi¬ 
dence of being trapped. He tore the envelope with 
trembling fingers. He withdrew the paper as if his 
life or death sentence might be written upon it 
—which indeed it might be, thought Rudd. Then 
in a flash his whole expression changed as he read: 

“To R. C. 

“Hope you will not be in a FURY at our leaving.— 

M” 

“Let me see it,” demanded the Skipper. “It’s in 
the handwriting of that scoundrel Menon.” He 
glanced over the sheet. “Looks all right. Wonder 
what his idea was in putting ‘fury* in capital letters. 
How about it, Caverly?” 

Rudd glanced over the Skipper’s thick shoulder 
and saw the word FURY standing out in high 
print above all the other words. 

“Joking, I guess,” laughed Reggie nervously. 
The reaction from his dread had patently upset him. 

Rudd turned away. He wanted to think. The 
note and Reggie’s strange behavior further strength¬ 
ened his conviction that their whole series of mis¬ 
fortunes thus far had been carefully planned ahead 
of time. Only by watching Reggie carefully could 
the party possibly guard against further catastrophe. 
And Rudd felt that he alone could do this, as the 
others had come to trust Reggie implicitly; more- 
95 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


over, he had thought of a scheme that might trap 
Reggie if the Doctor would only agree to let him 
try it. 

The Doctor did agree, not because he thought so 
much of Rudd’s plan, as because he, too, fortunately, 
had not missed the anxiety Reggie had displayed over 
reading his note in public. 


CHAPTER XI 


RUDD WINS 

OU see, sir,” Rudd explained to the Doctor, 



“I surprised him time and time again in 


company with Mr. Menon. If there was 
a real scheme to steal the ship and desert us, Caverly 
might well have been made a party to it, and by steal¬ 
ing the carburetor float succeed in keeping us here 
while the Erik got away.” 

“It doesn’t sound reasonable,” countered the Doc¬ 
tor, “first because I don’t believe Menon would have 
left the food if he had intended to abandon our 
party; and second, because I can’t possibly see the 
point in Caverly’s trying to stop us here at his own 
risk.” 

“Anyway, sir, if I’m right the best thing to do is 
to force his hand. You are familiar with what it 
means to winter here. Let this sink into Reggie’s 
bean and then give him a chance to get away with 
the boat. He’ll jump at it if he has any idea of 
catching the Erik. ,f 

At lunch that day Dr. Barlow broached the de¬ 
tails of their future. “I find that we have food for 
four months,” he began. “This could be stretched 


9 7 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


into six or even eight if we go on half rations. Our 
best bet, however, is to collect enough meat to last 
us through the winter.” 

“Done!” agreed the Skipper roundly. “I’ve had 
a scurvy party before, and I don’t want any of it 
again.” 

“Bear’s fine!” observed Boggs. “Let me go after 
them.” 

Rudd chuckled. “Or they after you ?” 

The Doctor held up his hand. “Now, let’s stick 
to the point,” said he, “we’ve got to look our future 
in the face. We are in approximately seventy de¬ 
grees north latitude. Already we are nearing the 
end of July. In August the sun begins to set. Not 
long afterwards darkness will come with winter bliz¬ 
zards. I know by experience the temperature goes 
down to more than sixty below zero and stays there 
for weeks at a time.” 

“Righto!” boomed the Skipper, with the emphasis 
of a man who had put in six black winters north of 
the Arctic Circle. 

“The Pole Star will take us but a few hundred 
miles on the fuel we have. Which is not enough 
to enable us to reach the natives either in Pons 
Inlet on Baffin Land or in Coronation Gulf to the 
westward. If we go south, there is less chance of 
finding game. If we go north, we may be frozen 
in before we can possibly lay up enough meat for 
98 


RUDD WINS 


the winter. In consequence our only hope is to 
stay where we are and collect game and skins against 
eight months of terrible cold. As soon as the straits 
break out in the early summer, we may be able to 
sail clear of Baffin Bay and be picked up by some 
whaler.” 

“Scarce these days,” observed the Skipper. 
“Whaling has pretty much gone out of fashion with 
the cheap oil on every market.” 

“Quite right, Pike. But we have to weigh our 
chances in every direction and select that course 
offering the greatest hope of success.” 

“How about the cache?” ventured Reggie. 

“We can build some sort of sledge with the scraps 
of lumber we have and bring supplies across the 
peninsula.” 

“But don’t we have to use every stick for a 
house?” asked Rudd. 

“Not at all. Both the Skipper and I can build 
Eskimo igloos when the snow gets properly packed. 
Until then we should center our efforts on a stone 
structure, much of the type the North Greenland 
people use. With mud and moss we can make a very 
habitable shelter.” 

“Ain’t no use,” whimpered the dreary Boggs. 

Dr. Barlow turned on him with fire in his eye. 
“If I hear any whining in this crowd,” he said 
sternly, “I’m going to treat it as I would the same 
99 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


thing in a child. I’m going to turn to and whip it 
out of the guilty one!” 

“Well put,” agreed the Skipper. ‘Til be there 
myself with a good stiff seaboot’s toe!” 

“Speaking of boots,” put in Rudd, “oughtn’t we 
to have some skin ones like the Eskimos? I doubt 
if these leather ones will stand the cold.” 

Dr. Barlow nodded. “I was coming to that. 
Musk-ox hide from the animal’s foreleg makes most 
excellent footgear. Captain Pike and I spotted what 
we think was a herd this morning and plan to organ¬ 
ize the hunt right away. As we have no dogs it will 
take the whole crowd of us. Except—” He looked 
meaningly at Rudd—“I think we might leave Caverly 
here. He still feels a little low; and he might 
straighten up the boat a bit.” 

Boggs looked askance at this suggestion, but there 
was nothing he could say; and if his beloved Rudd 
was agreed, he felt it ought to be all right. 

After a good meal of ptarmigan, which the Doc¬ 
tor had bagged, and hard bread dipped in the gravy, 
the four set off. Dr. Barlow’s scheme was to sur¬ 
round the herd in case it broke, and so be sure of 
getting at least one or two of the animals. Captain 
Pike and Boggs set off north, the Doctor and Rudd 
south, all armed with rifles, and agreed to meet near 
the base of a conspicuous plateau about five miles 
east. 


ioo 


RUDD WINS 


As soon as the Doctor and Rudd were out of sight 
around the first point the latter turned off up the 
hill. ‘Til wait up there, sir,” said Rudd, “as you 
suggest. And if anything strange seems to be hap¬ 
pening on the boat I can signal you.” 

This had seemed a foolhardy scheme at first. Dr. 
Barlow pointed out that if Reggie did plan to at¬ 
tempt an escape on the Pole Star he might get away 
before Rudd could possibly stop him. 

“I doubt it, sir,” Rudd had protested. “The 
anchor is heavy; and by the time he either hoisted it 
or slipped the cable I could be opposite him on the 
beach and cover him with my rifle. He wouldn’t 
dare go, knowing what a shot I am.” 

So the Doctor had assented; and now Reggie was 
to be given his chance to do with the Pole Star what 
Rudd believed Mr. Menon had done with the Erik, 
namely, steal her and abandon his friends. 

Rudd stationed himself in the lee of a granite 
shelf where he could see the Pole Star's decks with¬ 
out being detected. Behind him to the eastward 
stretched a rolling snowy plain ending in a precipi¬ 
tous bluff at the foot of which were the musk oxen. 
While he had never seen any live ones, he knew this 
species to be arctic sheep, in appearance not unlike 
the buffalo. Their long black hair dragged the 
ground, and their meat was highly prized by the 
natives. 

IOI 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


For a monotonous hour he sat. Once or twice, 
to warm himself, he trotted up and down on the side 
of the hill, away from the cove. But he was afraid 
to let the launch long out of his sight; his responsi¬ 
bility was too great. 

He contemplated the arctic waste spread before his 
eyes. The mist and fog had lifted, permitting a 
good view of the land about. The dull sky over¬ 
head was so low it seemed as if one could reach up 
and touch it. Little scurries of powdery snow 
danced across the level spaces and stumbled and 
scattered over patches of coarse arctic grass that 
had struggled into being earlier in the month. 
It was a dead land. Snow was its shroud; the howl 
of the wind and the grinding of the floes, its endless 
funeral dirge. Great black boulders dragged down 
by prehistoric glaciers stood out here and there like 
gigantic tombstones. Not a living thing stirred. 
Not a sound arose save those of the ice-girt straits 
and the sigh of the cold wind creeping out of the 
polar sea. 

Rudd shuddered. “Gosh! A whole winter of 
this!” he groaned. Then suddenly he rose to his 
knees. On the opposite side of the depression just 
south of him, not a thousand yards away, appeared a 
dozen dark balls. At first they looked perfectly 
round; then he saw that each had a set of short 


102 


RUDD WINS 

legs nearly hidden in hair, and he realized they were 
musk oxen. 

“Too long for a shot,” he muttered. “I won¬ 
der—” It was a terrible strain not to make for the 
game. The wind was just right so that he could 
have a good shot; and there was shelter in the way 
of gullies and boulders right up to the pasture where 
the herd fed. But Rudd’s conscience would not 
quite permit him to leave his post of duty. 

“How about the Doctor?” he thought, and with 
his glass studied the route by which his companion 
had disappeared. Then, to his satisfaction, he saw 
Dr. Barlow emerge from an almost invisible cup in 
the plain and begin to stalk the oxen. 

Rudd watched him with admiration. The Doctor 
had hunted in the Rockies, in South Africa, China, 
and Thibet, and knew his technic like a master 
sportsman. He was not seventy-five yards from his 
quarry when he lay flat for an opening salvo at the 
unsuspecting animals. A puff of smoke showed he 
had fired, followed by a distant crack some moments 
later. 

Instantly the musk oxen threw up their heads and 
whirled into formation. Rudd had heard of the hol¬ 
low square they make when attacked. Now he saw 
one in actuality. Five bulls arranged themselves in 
a semicircle facing the direction from which the 
report had come. Behind them were the cows and 
103 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


the calves. None moved; but all waited for the 
enemy to continue his attack. One wavered—he had 
been hit—then staggered to his knees, and lay down 
quietly in the white snow. The others gave no sign 
of perturbation, except that the four remaining bulls 
opened their spacing sufficiently to cover that left by 
the first victim. 

Rudd waited expectantly for the next one to fall. 
“Why doesn’t he shoot?” he cried aloud. “It’s a 
cinch at that range!” 

But no shot came. Through his glass Rudd could 
see the Doctor working at his rifle. Evidently it had 
jammed. And while he wrenched at the operating 
lever the unruffled bulls stood their ground. Sud¬ 
denly, to Rudd’s horror, they began to advance. 

“Jiminy crickets and bear-cats!” he muttered. 

He would have shouted a warning, and actually 
started to do so only to check himself. The Doctor 
would hardly hear him at this distance in the first 
place; in the second place, Reggie would undoubtedly 
catch the cry and thus put an end to the scheme to 
discover his villainy. 

“Guess I’ll have to help him out,” concluded Rudd. 
He realized now that the musk oxen had sighted the 
Doctor. Like many other peaceful creatures they 
would leave another undisturbed, or even retreat, 
so long as they were not attacked. But let their 
fighting ire once get up and even the dreaded wolf- 
104 


RUDD WINS 


pack found them a worthy foe. Already one of the 
bulls had broken into a trot and with lowered head 
was brandishing his long curved horns defiantly. 

Rudd shot a glance at the Pole Star. The Doc¬ 
tor’s peril certainly justified his taking a chance in 
leaving his lookout. Instantly his eyes widened with 
emotion at what he saw. The Pole Star was under 
way! While he had been watching Doctor Barlow 
and the oxen, the sole occupant of the launch had ap¬ 
parently managed to free her from her anchorage. 
A light puffing sound drifted up. Her engine was 
going. 

Rudd’s heart sank. On one hand his best friend 
was in imminent danger of being gored to death 
by the enraged bulls; on the other he saw escaping 
the party’s last connection with the civilized world 
and home. 

His theory had, therefore, been correct. But there 
was no joy in the triumph. 


CHAPTER XII 


SUSPENSE 

EVER before in his life had Rudd been 



forced to do such quick thinking. Many 


^ ^ a man would have been too stunned by his 

frightful dilemma to act at all. But Rudd had that 
happy gift of facing danger with full control of his 
faculties. Now his brain seemed afire. In a flash 
he saw the dreadful consequences of losing the 
launch. To be sure a certain amount of caribou and 
musk ox meat might be secured on the peninsula. It 
was even possible that enough sea birds could be 
snared Eskimo-fashion to eke out a subsistence until 
spring. But the Pole Star stood for a means by 
which walrus and seal could be pursued. These ani¬ 
mals were really the mainstay of the natives, and 
must certainly play a large part in the health and 
safety of the little expedition. The sea at certain 
seasons abounded with them; whereas the barren 
land could at best support but a few scattered herds 
of grass-eating animals. Further, when the rigors 
of the terrible winter had been survived, there yet 
remained the vital need of some means of transporta¬ 
tion south. Men could walk; but men’s food must 


106 


SUSPENSE 


be carried. And a man cannot, in the north country, 
lug enough provisions and equipment to last him 
more than a week or so. No timber for sledges was 
available outside that comprising the spars and extra 
decking of the Pole Star. And even if there were, it 
was exceedingly doubtful whether the inexperienced 
members of the party could survive a trip long 
enough to take them into safety. Franklin’s men 
with the best preserved food and specially built 
sledges had starved and frozen to death in this very 
area a generation before. Only by the Pole Star 
would it be possible to reach waters where ships 
might be found. Only by the Pole Star would meat 
and reasonable comfort be assured. Only by the 
Pole Star could Rudd and his companions have even 
a fighting chance to win that life we all hold so dear 
—home and warmth and comfort, with all the daily 
joys of friends and hot meals, and books, and beds, 
and clothes. All these glaring details gripped Rudd’s 
mind like a stroke of prophetic foresight. And he 
valued them with a flood of emotion that only a 
man who has been desperately cold and hungry can 
understand. 

But in the next moment a wave of loyalty had 
swept all human selfishness aside. Dr. Barlow was 
his friend, his shipmate, his counselor. Dr. Barlow 
had time and again in his quiet way shown Rudd 
the road a real man should travel. Through all the 
107 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


trying days of the departure, the storm, even the 
present danger and anxiety, the Doctor had never 
wavered from his smiling acceptance of the best that 
was in his comrades, and had refused steadfastly to 
subscribe to any thought or word that belittled the 
value of good motives and worthy actions. With no 
shade of hesitation Rudd saw that to desert Dr. 
Barlow in his mortal peril was unthinkable. 

“But isn’t there a way to handle both?” was the 
question that thrust itself like a red-hot poker into 
his mind. 

With swift judgment he measured the distance 
between himself and the motor boat. “Four hun¬ 
dred yards, I’d say,” he muttered, and snapped up 
the sight bar. While the Pole Star was not yet mov¬ 
ing forward, Reggie was visible at the wheel work¬ 
ing the clutch back and forth. This with the 
swirling water under her stern showed that he 
was manuevering her around to get her bow pointed 
toward the opening. 

In desperation Rudd wavered. At this range he 
might wound Reggie, or he might kill him. He 
could not stomach the thought of murdering his 
fellow-man. 

“It’s to save the others,” a tiny voice urged him. 

“But suppose he really isn’t stealing the boat,” 
whispered his conscience. 

Then Fate played into his hands. Reggie was 

108 


SUSPENSE 


apparently having trouble with the clutch. He leaned 
over until only his shoulder was visible above the 
coaming of the boat. Rudd glanced around to see 
how Dr. Barlow was faring. The nearest bull was 
still twenty yards away. The Doctor had risen and 
was standing his ground staunchly. Rudd swung 
his rifle to his cheek, took a long breath and drew a 
bead on Reggie’s shoulder. His hand was as steady 
as if he was shooting on the rifle range at school. 
His narrowed lids did not quiver. He fired. In¬ 
stantly he pumped another cartridge into the cham¬ 
ber. One more shot, he felt, even if he missed, 
would certainly discourage the rather timorous 
Reggie from continuing his foolhardy attempt. But 
just as he sighted for another round, he saw the lad 
in the boat rise slowly to a standing position, swing 
his hand up to the shoulder which had been exposed, 
and then collapse in the cockpit. The bullet had 
struck its mark! 

'‘Winged him!” cried Rudd, as he turned to tackle 
his second problem. “Hope I can do as well next 
shot.” 

Again he set the sight, this time for 1,000 yards. 
Dr. Barlow was so close to the nearest musk ox that 
there was great risk in aiming too near him. The 
best Rudd could hope to do was to stop the attack 
long enough to let him run closer and finish the other 
animals off at shorter range. 

109 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


He lay down in the snow and repeated his prac¬ 
ticed method of taking a long breath, holding it and 
firing by squeezing his whole hand rather than pull¬ 
ing the trigger outright. He whipped his binoculars 
up the instant following the discharge and was grati¬ 
fied to see the attacking bull toss his head in the air 
—probably startled at the shriek of the passing 
bullet—followed by a spurt of powdery snow just 
beyond him. 

Rudd leaped to his feet and tore down the slope. 
Before he had covered two hundred yards the bull 
had again turned his attention to the Doctor. This 
time he was joined by the three others who had 
become emboldened by their leader’s effrontery. 
Twice Rudd dropped and fired before he was close 
enough to make a really good shot. The noise of the 
bullets and the explosions coming closer every minute 
began now to occupy the herd’s attention sufficiently 
to let Dr. Barlow beat a retreat. Only a nearby 
boulder offered any sort of safety. He dashed to 
this and scrambled up. 

Rudd counted as he ran. “Four—five—Jiminy, 
I’ve got to begin to do business now—only three 
rounds left!” 

There was no use in his trying to take cover. 
The bulls had discovered him and almost imme¬ 
diately decided he belonged to the same clan as 
their other disturber who had perched himself on 
no 


SUSPENSE 


the boulder. However, they didn’t make for Rudd 
but stood snorting and shaking their ugly horns in 
the air. 

“Careful, old fellow 1 ” shouted the Doctor, when 
Rudd was within three hundred yards of the fe¬ 
rocious group. “The cows won’t hurt you, but these 
devils are out for blood!” 

“Got only three cartridges left,” replied Rudd, 
never taking his eyes off the bulls. “Got to get ’em 
—or they’ll get me, and you too!” 

“Wo—o—o—f! Waugh!” came from the massive 
leader at this interchange of human speech. 

At fifty yards Rudd stopped and knelt. While 
his missiles would leave their rifle barrel at a 
velocity of nearly 3,000 feet a second, he knew the 
musk ox’s skull was very thick, and its brain but an 
insignificant handful behind a thick barrier of bone. 
Every shot must kill or he was lost. 

“Just above the eye!” cautioned the treed Doctor. 

Rudd pulled. The leader whirled, his huge shaggy 
shoulders seemed to expand for an instant, his sharp 
horns lashed the air. Then he collapsed with an 
audible thud on the icy ground. 

The Doctor waved his arm. “Splendid!” he 
cried. 

Again Rudd fired; and the second animal rolled 
in convulsions near his brother, reddening the white 
snow with his life’s blood. 


hi 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Rudd pumped the third cartridge in. The third 
bull stood ready to meet his fate, a black warrior of 
the wilderness, ready to avenge this singular death 
of his kind he had just witnessed. For a moment 
he wavered. He seemed to be listening; the scent 
of blood had crept into his nostrils. As a calf, learn¬ 
ing the butchery of the arctic wolf, his mother had 
taught him to fear this odor. Now it brought terror 
to his heart. It meant death; and instinctively he 
dreaded death with a wild hysterical horror. Rudd 
could see his small close-set eyes, blood-shot with fury. 

“Look out!” the Doctor yelled. But before the 
words had left his lips the bull had charged. Rudd 
did not lose his nerve. He aimed before he fired. 
Yet the extra tension of the moment, together with 
the bull’s rapid movement, made a perfect shot noth¬ 
ing short of a miracle. 

With a wild snort the bull paused and bit at his 
chest where the projectile had buried itself. For a 
few seconds it looked as if he were stopped. He 
leaped sidewise in pain and appeared to have forgot¬ 
ten the boy. Then, with what seemed to be almost a 
human scream of agony, he turned again upon Rudd. 

The lad braced himself, gripping his empty smok¬ 
ing rifle like a club. “Well, here goes!” he muttered 
between clenched teeth. Little he knew what a fine 
sight he made at that instant—feet widespread, head 
up, face grim with determination to die gamely, if 
112 


SUSPENSE 


die he must. Such is the heroism of the men we are 
breeding in our country to-day. 

The bull ran with his head lowered to within a 
foot from the ground. In this way he could get 
his horns well under his victim; and, besides goring 
him, toss him aside to give time for another attack. 
It was thus the agile wolf could sometimes be de¬ 
feated. But Rudd had no intention of being caught 
if he could possibly avoid it. Moving pictures of 
bull-fights had taught him that it was possible for a 
man to side-step under such circumstances swiftly 
enough to avoid the bull. 

He failed. He could feel the beast's hot breath 
on his clenched hands when he struck. But the force 
with which he brought the heavy rifle down on his 
assailant’s skull unbalanced him. His foot slipped 
in the snow and he was able only to hurl himself far 
enough aside to avoid the dagger-pointed horns 
before the hairy mass of living flesh and bone 
hurtled over him. 

Frantically he struggled to regain his feet. A 
ponderous weight seemed to hold his legs. Over his 
shoulder he saw the massive animal had also stumbled 
and lay with haunches across his knees. But Rudd’s 
fighting instinct would not let him give up even now. 
Expecting the infuriated beast to roll over and fin¬ 
ish him off the next second he twisted himself 
around sufficiently to raise the rifle which he still 
ii3 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


clutched. To his amazement the bull did not move. 
Only a convulsive quiver went through the creature’s 
gigantic frame as proof that he had ever lived. 

A cheery voice smote upon Rudd’s ears. “How 
was that for a shot?” It was Dr. Barlow. 

“You don’t mean to say—!” gasped Rudd. 

“I certainly do. Thought you might get into a 
jam like this when I saw you coming. You were 
too busy to notice that I was working with my gun 
the whole time you were shooting. Ejector lip broke 
and I had to jolt the cartridge out. Trouble was 
I knew I couldn’t get in more than one shot so I 
waited until it was needed.” 

Rudd gave a great sigh of relief. “It certainly 
was needed; I’ll say that!” 

“All right!” the Doctor took his hand. “Let’s call 
it square. We’ve managed to save each other’s lives 
and we’ve laid in a nice little stock of meat and skins 
—about three thousand pounds, I make it. And we 
can finish off these cows at our leisure. They’ll 
stick around.” 

Rudd began filling his magazine at once. “Let 
me—” he began. “No— Caesar’s ghost!” he broke 
off. “We can’t stop. I forgot to tell you, I’ve shot 
Reggie!” He grabbed Dr. Barlow and started to 
haul him towards the cove. “I may have killed 
him!” he wailed. “Hurry!” 


CHAPTER XIII 

NO HOPE! 


D R. BARLOW immediately conceded that 
| the only thing to do was to make all haste 
back to the Pole Star. If Reggie were 
wounded badly he might not be able to manage the 
boat. She then would either drift ashore and be 
damaged beyond repair, or she might even be carried 
by the tide out through the entrance. As Reggie 
evidently planned to take the flattie with him there 
would be no way of retrieving her. 

“You may have done right,” said the Doctor. 
“But it still seems absolutely inconceivable that 
Caverly would be capable of carrying out such an 
iniquitous plan as you suspect him of.” 

Rudd stamped his foot to emphasize his protest. 
“But didn’t I see him leaving?” 

“Doubtless. Had you any reason to believe he 
wasn’t just trying the engine? He worked very 
faithfully over it while you and Boggs were absent.” 

Rudd’s feelings would not permit him to continue 
the discussion. Only events could prove whether or 
not he had made the terrible mistake of shooting his 
ii5 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


own shipmate. Never will he forget that walk! 
One moment his legs wouldn't carry him fast enough 
toward the cove. The next, he felt like breaking 
and running away lest matters should turn out to 
show how culpable had been his misconception of 
Reggie’s character. 

At last the bordering height on the cove’s lower 
edge was reached. Rudd could contain himself no 
longer. With his heart in his throat he dashed 
ahead. At the crest overlooking the water he 
stopped, gave one look, and turned with radiant face. 

“I told you so!” he shouted. 

Dr. Barlow joined him. The Pole Star was no¬ 
where in sight! 

'‘Told me so—” growled the Doctor, self-accus- 
ingly. “Well, you needn’t be so all-fired chipper 
about it. You’ve probably wounded the lad and our 
boat is drifting out to sea with him.” 

“But look, sir! we can see the whole coast up 
and down.” 

“No, we can’t at all. If she’s beached, the launch 
will be found somewhere among those grounded 
floes above or below here. We’ve got to make a 
search, and in a hurry, too!” 

But it was to no purpose. Careful investigation 
up and down the shore line in the vicinity of the cove 
failed to reveal any trace of the Pole Star. 

“Guess you were right,” Dr. Barlow finally ad- 
116 


NO HOPE! 


mitted. “He must been only scratched by your bul¬ 
let and went on out with the boat. And that means 
you were right about his stealing the carburetor float 
to keep us here. The scoundrel has sneaked his 
way up or down the coast so that he is out of sight 
by this time.” 

“Is there any use trying to catch him?” asked 
Rudd. 

“Not in the least. He has fuel to run him a long 
way. And, unless something happens to his engine, 
there is no reason why he shouldn’t be miles towards 
the Erik before we could get a start.” 

“But where do you suppose she is?” 

“Don’t know, unless Menon had some rendezvous 
settled upon before we left, as no doubt he had.” 

Rudd leaned forward suddenly and gripped his 
companion’s wrist. “I’ve got it!” 

“Got what?” The Doctor was beginning to re¬ 
spect Rudd’s intelligence. 

“The rendezvous! Don’t you remember that note 
to Reggie we found at the cache ? Didn’t it have the 
word ‘Fury’ in capital letters?” 

“Yes,” said the Doctor with interest. “But I’m 
not the boy detective you seem to be. What 
about it?” 

“Why he must have meant Fury and Hecla 
Straits! That’s the shortest way out. He probably 
was going to take a look at the ice there, and if the 
ii 7 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


passage seemed favorable would use that route. 
Reggie would receive word, as this proves he did, 
to meet the Erik either there or in Lancaster Sound 
the way we came in.” 

This explanation sounded reasonable enough to 
Dr. Barlow; and he later brought the Skipper around 
to the same way of thinking. That gentleman had 
brought back Boggs some hours later loaded down 
with two large strings of ptarmigan, four arctic 
hare, and a chest full of objurgations he heaped upon 
the unfortunate fireman’s head at every step. 

“You ought to have stayed home with your wife!” 
Rudd and the Doctor heard him roar a quarter of 
a mile away. “An old worthless fossil like you 
has no business going to sea!” 

“But no guy can run races with rheumatiz!” 
wailed Boggs. 

“Rheumatiz, my whiskers!” boomed the Skipper. 
“You’re not old enough to have it. Why, here I 
am on the down-hill side of sixty and I can land 
a heaving line with the best of ’em!” 

Even the news of the Pole Star’s loss did not 
feaze the Skipper. 

“Wasn’t built right, anyway,” he growled. “Her 
strakes’d made a good chicken coop for the missus, 
or a lobster pot. As for-” 

“But man alive!” exlcaimed the Doctor, “do you 
118 


NO HOPE! 

realize that we’re now absolutely cut off from every 
thing?” 

“Yes,” was the complacent reply. “ ’Tis pretty 
bad when you come to think of it. Fact, I ain’t sure 
my ’baccy’s going to last the winter through or not. 
Thank killicks, I brought that extra pound ashore 
with me! Foresight, I tell you. Don’t ever let your 
^ggage get separated.” 

Dr. Barlow could not restrain a laugh. “You 
do beat all, Pike! To the best of my knowledge, 
here we are facing death from starvation or scurvy 
or cold, or all three put together. And you stand 
there like a great big Santa Claus and lecture me 
about not getting separated from my tobacco!” 

“Well, Barlow,” retorted the old Skipper with a 
queer twitching motion of the whiskers that grew 
near the corner of his mouth, “this is about the 
fiftieth time I’ve come to the end of my rope in this 
life. And I’m calkalating to die yet at home in my 
bed from an overdose of vermifuge that old woman 
of mine is always giving me every time I sneeze.” 

“I hope you’re right, Pike. I confess I feel pretty 
much the same way.” 

Boggs shrugged his shoulders meaningly. “I 
don’t!” said he. 

The Doctor laid his hand on the poor fellow’s 
shoulder. “Boggs, you don’t know the arctic if 
that’s the way you feel. Look here.” He led Boggs 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


to a small patch of ground on the sheltered southern 
side of a large rock. At that moment the sun’s rays 
broke through the clouds and turned the gray snow 
to a myriad of sparkling diamonds. With his foot 
he brushed the flakes from some small twiglike vege¬ 
tation that had been covered by the recent fall. 
“Look at that!” 

Boggs opened his eyes in wonder. A cluster of 
yellow poppies, gleaming like gold in the warm sun¬ 
light, met his astonished gaze. He leaned over to 
touch them to be sure he was not dreaming. 

“That’s the arctic for you, Boggsy. Apparently 
dead and lifeless, nothing but cold and ice and 
snow; only endless darkness and winter. And yet 
if a man only knows where to look for it there is 
warmth and beauty.” 

Thus under the leadership of the resourceful and 
indomitable Doctor the little party set to work vig¬ 
orously to make themselves comfortable and safe 
in preparation for the dark months ahead. There 
was no change from the original belief that the 
safest course would be to remain at this point and 
winter. When spring came a retreat south could be 
made with such equipment as had been wrought 
from natural sources. Animals would provide food 
and clothing. Their sinews could be stranded into 
thread. Bones and scraps of driftwood must be 
husbanded for sledge material. 


120 


NO HOPE! 


“Don’t you think we ought to move over to the 
cache?” Rudd suggested when a house site was being 
picked out. 

“It would be more convenient,” agreed the Doctor. 
“But my idea is to leave a note with the provisions 
in case the Erik returns. If we are looked for here, 
as is likely, we can have a cairn piled at some promi¬ 
nent point from which it may be seen by a passing 
vessel. Moreover, this is a sheltered spot and one 
likely to be sought by game in view of the meadow- 
land behind us.” 

The house was finished after four days of hard 
work. It consisted of walls built of sandstone slabs 
selected from a talus slope under the protecting hill 
behind. By raking away gravel, advantage was taken 
of the slope to effect a semidugout. Then Boggs 
tumped in some extra broad pieces which were 
weighted on their outer edges so they would project 
several feet beyond the supporting wall. Three 
frozen musk ox hides served to complete the roof. 
Moss and mud formed an excellent plaster with 
which to seal the interstices between the rocks. And 
a portion of canvas brought from the cache formed 
a temporary door. Sleeping bags had of course been 
lost with the Pole Star, though their contained blan¬ 
kets had fortunately been brought ashore for drying. 
These spread upon the skins of musk ox and bear 
formed a bed of utmost luxury. 

121 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Captain Pike proved to be the most expert in 
preparation of hides. He taught Rudd to scrape all 
fat and tissue from their inner sides and then stake 
them out to dry. A few days of sunshine cured 
them sufficiently to make preservation successful. 
Tendons from the animals’ backs were used to sew 
the thick material together. 

“We’re going to be up against it for fuel,” said 
Rudd when he was making tea on the second morn¬ 
ing. He and Boggs were taking turns at the very 
limited cooking. “That gallon of kerosene is nearly 
gone.” 

Boggs wrung his hands at the prospect of making 
the long trip across to the cache again for more oil. 

Dr. Barlow poured himself a steaming cup and 
smiled his old cheering grin. “Remember that 
poppy, Boggs? Well, there’s gold if you only look.” 

“But gold won’t burn, sir!” 

“No, but peat will.” 

Seizing a camp ax, the Doctor strode over to a 
small marshy spot at the edge of a fresh-water pool 
they had been using. With the skill of an adept 
he chopped out a hunk the size of a brick. He held 
it out to the wondering Boggs. “There’s your 
gold,” said he. 

“That mud?” 

“Yes, ‘that mud.’ Each year a thin crop of weeds 
and grass dies. In time the successive layers of 
122 


NO HOPE! 


vegetable matter settle down and coagulate into a 
carboniferous matrix.” 

“Carbifferous what?” echoed Boggs. 

“A mass of material composed almost entirely 
of carbon,” explained the Doctor. “Eventually 
sand and dirt will be washed down upon it. Pres¬ 
sure will increase, age after age, until centuries 
hence coal will be formed. Our coal mines were 
all great peat bogs at one time. Some people, as in 
Ireland and Denmark, use little else than peat for 
fuel. I can dry this brick I have cut and burn it 
like coal.” 

Thus had the ingenious Doctor pointed the way to 
an unlimited supply of fuel. Another and deeper 
peat bed was discovered later, on the far side of 
the cove. And each member of the party took his 
turn cutting it and spreading the bricks on the rocks 
to dry. A small stove of flat stones was built and 
outdoor cooking began, much to the economy of the 
precious kerosene. 

Lighting the rock house was another problem. 
There were no candles, and oil could not be wasted 
on the luxury of illumination. No one bothered 
much, however, until Captain Pike lost his jack¬ 
knife in the furs one evening while trying to shave 
off his tobacco plug. Next morning Boggs con¬ 
tributed to the public comfort by mashing up a 
quantity of suet he scraped from the musk ox 
123 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


meat. Some twine provided a wick which he cen¬ 
tered in half a dozen homemade candles he molded 
from the grease. 

All this time hunting was the principal occupa¬ 
tion. A meat cache was built from slabs similar 
to those in the house. Several raids from blue 
foxes had made this precaution necessary; but no 
wolves had as yet appeared. 

At the end of the first week an expedition was 
organized to revisit the cache on the other side. 
Most of the food had to be brought over before 
autumn blizzards began; and all four of the men 
still felt remotely hopeful that either the Erik or 
the Pole Star would be heard from again. 

Dr. Barlow had gone to the summit of the hill 
early the morning of departure for a look at the 
weather. He had arranged to signal to Rudd if con¬ 
ditions to the eastward looked too threatening to 
make the attempt, in which case postponement would 
be in order. 

Rudd sat on a low stone bench just outside the 
hut. Boggs was repairing a hole in the sandstone 
stove. Captain Pike busied himself with cleaning 
a pair of fine caribou skins which had been secured 
the day before. 

“There he goes,” said Rudd, his eye screwed 
to his binoculars. “But what does he mean?” The 
signal arranged was one arm up meant that the 
124 


NO HOPE! 

men could start. Both arms up would indicate snow 
or wind. 

“Looks as if he’d run into a nest of wasps,” re¬ 
marked the Skipper, glancing up from his scraping. 

“Or bears,” suggested Boggs, who had not yet 
entirely got over his affair at the cache. 

All three stopped and stared. With strides 
fathom-long the usually imperturbable Doctor came 
galloping down the hill, waving both arms like a 
crazy man and shouting unintelligible words as 
he came. 


CHAPTER XIV 


MORE MYSTERY 

HE three waiting explorers had but a single 



idea of what might be the matter with the 


excited Doctor: he had seen the Erik. 


Even the return of the Pole Star could not possibly 
work him up into the state of lunacy he exhibited 
on his charge down the hill. As a climax he stum¬ 
bled and rolled like a wounded musk ox down the 
last snow-ribbon just above the camp. 

“Hey!” bawled the Skipper, who had thus far 
concealed effectually his deep concern over the un¬ 
explained absence of his ship. “H’ist her up again, 
Barlow, and let’s have the news.” 

“Wish—I—I could!” panted the Doctor, when he 
finally scrambled up, wiping wet snow from his eyes. 
“First of all there are a bunch of Eskimos on the 
other side of the hill.” 

“Hooray!” yelled Boggs, who had long before 
learned the worth of native aid. 

The Skipper made no attempt to conceal his dis¬ 
appointment. “Piddle!” said he. “Only a bunch 
of grease spots!” 

“That’s not all by any means,” continued the 


126 


MORE MYSTERY 


Doctor. “They are shouting ‘Oomiaksmq!' which, 
if I remember right, means 'the Big Ship/ And 
they are pointing toward the other side of the penin¬ 
sula. As they came from that direction, they must 
have just seen the Erik ” 

The Skipper braced up a bit. “Any of our men 
with them ?” 

“Not that I could see. Only five sledges with 
native drivers to each. Must be a village near here 
as they did not have their womenfolk with them.” 

“There they are now!” cried Boggs. 

Over the hill at a gallop came five teams of huskie 
dogs. Their tails were up, a sign of well-fed en¬ 
thusiasm and anticipation. 

Perched near the bow of each sledge knelt a skin- 
clad driver. Whips cracked like so many gunshots. 
Streams of Eskimo profanity mingled with yelps 
and shrieks of the animals. Powdery snow flew up 
in a misty cloud save where the metal-shod runners 
crossed bare rocks that struck showers of sparks 
into the air. 

“We’d better move,” thought Rudd, “before we 
get run over.” But with a skill that awakened his 
admiration each driver swerved his team just be¬ 
fore they crashed headlong into camp, capsized his 
sledge to hold them, and trotted up with shouts of 
greeting and laughter. No reunion of long-lost 
friends could have been so warm and noisy as 
127 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


that which the good-natured natives made of the 
meeting. 

The white men shook hands and grinned appre¬ 
ciation, speaking the while all English words of 
greeting with as much heartiness as if each syllable 
were understood. Captain Pike and Boggs could 
each use enough of the native tongue to act as inter¬ 
preters. As soon as the tumult of joy had subsided 
a bit, both started in to discover what the news was 
about the Erik . 

“Oomiaksuaq! Oamiaksuaq!” was all that could 
be got out of the visitors. 

Boggs stalked up to the fattest hunter and shook 
his fist under his stubby nose. “Talk sense, you 
lump of blubber!” he bawled loud enough to be 
heard the other side of the peninsula, and repeated 
it in the best Eskimo he could master. 

The native nearly doubled up with mirth, appar¬ 
ently at Boggs’ pronunciation. Then he led Boggs 
to a patch of snow and began to sketch with his 
whipstock on the white surface. 

“It’s the shore line on the other side!” exclaimed 
Rudd. 

He was right. The native marked Erik Harbor 
with a cluster of squares to indicate the cache. Some 
distance further down he drew the rough figure of 
a boat. “Oomiak!” he said gutturally. 

128 


MORE MYSTERY 


“Must mean the Pole Star ” put in the Doctor. 
“Ask him if she’s wrecked, Pike; and if any one is 
aboard.” 

But the Skipper could gain only the information 
that the launch was floating in shallow water and 
that, so far as the Eskimos knew, no one was in 
her. They had not noticed if she were anchored. 
And, being somewhat nervous about the presence 
of devils, thought they had better look up the own¬ 
ers. They soon found the cache and were able to 
follow Rudd’s and Boggs’ week-old trail across the 
land. 

The Doctor was not satisfied. “But I understood 
them to say they had seen the big ship,” said he. 

“They did, sir,” said Boggs excitedly. “Look at 
that there map this guy’s drawn.” 

With eagerness the castaways leaned over the 
crude chapt. Just opposite the spot at which the 
Pole Star's resting place was marked showed the 
outline of a much larger craft. “Oomiaksuaq /” re¬ 
peated the native, pointing to the sketch; and indi¬ 
cated that the Erik had been on her way south to¬ 
wards Fury and Hecla Straits just as Rudd had 
predicted. 

Captain Pike shook his head. “I confess I have 
believed all along she would turn up again. I still 
can’t give myself up to the fact that the old bucket’s 
129 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

gone.” He pulled his whiskers. “But this certainly 
looks like it now!” 

“It does indeed, Pike,” said Dr. Barlow. And 
turning to Rudd, he held out his hand. “Forgive 
me, lad, if I was slow in believing you. Had I 
only listened to you in the beginning, this unfortu¬ 
nate end to our plans might never have come to 
pass.” 

“He’s right on the job when there’s anything 
doin’, sir,” said Boggs, proud of his friend. “I’m 
telling you he’s got eyes in the back of his head!” 

Rudd smiled his appreciation of this praise; but, 
being a little embarrassed, tried to change the sub¬ 
ject by bringing up the possibility that Reggie had 
never reached the Erik. But the Doctor paid him a 
further compliment by asking him what he thought 
about it. 

“I believe he did, sir.” Rudd pointed to the 
Eskimo’s sketch. “The Erik might have been out 
of sight among the icebergs the day Boggs and I 
were there. If Reggie managed to reach her, it 
would probably have been about where the sketch 
shows the Pole Star to be now. No doubt the 
launch was abandoned in order not to take that much 
extra weight aboard the ship.” 

“Don’t you think we ought to investigate?” 

“I think we ought to rescue our cooking gear and 
fuel we left aboard.” 


130 


MORE MYSTERY 


So it was agreed that instead of the party going 
to the cache direct it should visit the Pole Star first. 
If she were intact, a load of cases could be brought 
around on her. If she were wrecked, her cargo 
could at least be rescued. 

The Skipper was called upon to arrange with the 
natives to help transport Rudd and the Doctor to 
the motor boat. After some discussion among them¬ 
selves they pointed to their dogs and out to the 
broad sheet of old ice that had that morning drifted 
across the entrance of the cove. 

*'Say they have to get dog meat,” interpreted the 
Skipper. “Probably will find seals on that ice out 
there, and with a good feed and rest will be able to 
start to-morrow for the Pole Star ” 

Rudd was more than pleased with this plan for 
it would give him a chance to see the hunters in 
action. The leader made signs that he would be 
glad to take Rudd along, and arranged a place for 
him among the skins at the back of his sledge. This 
proved an unjustified kindness, though. Between 
boulders on the land and rough pinnacles on the ice 
Rudd spent most of his time either dashing along 
beside the team or helping right the sledge which 
capsized every few moments. The others followed 
in column, each squad of yelping dogs apparently 
unified by a mad desire to be first in the race. 

Some distance from the land the Eskimo signed to 

131 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Rudd that the dogs were to be hitched and the men 
go on to their hunting. Each team was made fast 
at some distance from the others. Obviously there 
would have been a battle royal had any pair of 
teams got mixed up, judging from the snarling and 
threatening growls that made an unceasing din. 

On the ice the hunters separated. Rudd followed 
the leader who took him to a hole about a foot in 
diameter through which there were fresh signs of 
a seal’s having come up to sun himself. Here the 
Eskimo laid a small square of bearskin on the ice 
and uncoiled his harpoon line he had brought from 
the sledge. The harpoon itself consisted simply of 
a wooden shaft tipped with walrus ivory to which 
was toggled a barb of the same material. The barb 
had been bored out to take the end of the seal hide 
line. Rudd saw, after a few moments of puzzling, 
that if the harpoon were driven at a seal, the barb 
would bury itself in the animal’s flesh, at the same 
time becoming detached from the shaft. Thereafter 
the hunter could play his catch much the same as 
an angler his fish. 

“Sh-h-h!” said the hunter, and motioned Rudd to 
stand back lest the seal see him. Then, for what 
seemed an interminable period, he stood absolutely 
immobile, his harpoon poised above his head. It 
did not seem possible that any human being could 
keep still for such a length of time. Rudd began 
132 


MORE MYSTERY 


to have cramps and kinks in his legs and back de¬ 
spite the fact that he was free to wriggle a great deal 
more than the frozen native dared to. 

Suddenly, just when Rudd had about given up 
hope, he heard a whistling sound that seemed to come 
from directly beneath his feet. The next instant a 
puffing accompanied by a small cloud of vapor issued 
from the seal’s breathing hole. 

The Eskimo did not strike at once. He seemed 
paralyzed. Not the quiver of a muscle showed that 
he was even alive. Then, like a lightning flash, 
he drove his harpoon straight down out of sight. 

“Ka! Ka!” he shouted excitedly at Rudd. The 
latter dashed up thinking to seize the coil of line that 
was spinning out with dangerous speed. The 
Eskimo blocked him; and, snatching up a small 
spear, plunged its sharp point into the center of the 
coil. A moment later the end snapped up against 
the spear and Rudd saw that it had been spliced into 
a large eye, thus enabling the hunter to anchor his 
prey. 

Now began a lively struggle. The jabbering 
Eskimo nearly wept in his frantic efforts to make 
the white man understand how to help. Finally he 
got through Rudd’s head the fact that the spear’s 
point was the crux of the situation. If the seal 
pulled that out, not only would he be lost but the 
precious line as well. Rudd promptly seized the 
133 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


handle below his companion’s straining hands and 
jammed it into the ice for all he was worth. 

At first it looked as if the seal were going to 
escape after all. The floe’s crust was so rotten with 
the summer heat that it splintered and gave in every 
direction. The Eskimo panted and chattered and 
wagged his head. Rudd threw every ounce of 
strength he had into the task. Finally, with surpris¬ 
ing abruptness, the strain slackened. The seal had 
come up to blow. From a near-by hole his puffing 
was audible, but neither of his captors dared leave 
their post lest he escape. 

Four times was this performance repeated. Then 
the Eskimo with Rudd’s assistance began to heave in 
the line. Finally the seal splashed up at their very 
feet and blew like a young whale. Rudd made as 
if to grab him much to the uproarious delight of the 
native. The latter merely stood his ground and 
every time the animal came up banged its head with 
his harpoon shaft until it was nearly drowned. 

The end came by Rudd’s taking the line while the 
Eskimo lay flat and reached into the hole. Grabbing 
the seal’s hind flipper he got it between his teeth and 
rose slowly to his feet. With a chortle of delight 
he swung the squirming animal upon the ice. Dex¬ 
trous work with his knife finished it off in a trice; 
and with Rudd tailing on he dragged it back to his 
ravenous wolves. 


134 


MORE MYSTERY 


Seven seals in all were taken this way, ample to 
feed the dogs to repletion with enough over for a 
fat cache on the beach. The sun was well around 
by the time Rudd reached camp, tired and hungry. 
Boggs had saved a double portion of musk ox steak 
for him and the Skipper’s pipe gave the hut a hos¬ 
pitable fragrance. Altogether he felt well contented 
with life. 

“Almost sorry I wasn’t born an Eskimo!” he ex¬ 
claimed, and snuggled down into the luxurious bed 
of furs. 

He dreamed he was harpooning the Pole Star 
with a ten-foot weapon and that Captain Pike was 
King of the Eskimos! 


CHAPTER XV 


THE WRECK 


N EXT day the Eskimos refused to start on 
account of their dogs. This time the 
animals were so gorged with meat in place 
of their former starved condition, that work with 
them was impossible. Rudd and Dr. Barlow were 
grateful for the delay, as it gave them an opportunity 
to get their gear into shape for the long trip. Though 
spare moccasins had fortunately been brought in 
from the Pole Star before she left, rocky travel had 
already made great inroads upon their soles. A lucky 
find was made when Boggs discovered that one of 
the natives had several extra pairs of boots which 
proved to be large enough for both Rudd and the 
Doctor. With grass insoles and hareskin stockings 
these made both comfortable and rugged additions 
to the scanty wardrobe of each. Rudd also bought a 
caribouskin shirt from the man he had been hunting 
with. Two needles and a large nail he discovered in 
his sewing kit were the price paid. 

“We’d better take tea for the crowd and depend 
on them for meat,” suggested the Doctor. “That 
136 


THE WRECK 


will not only conserve our tinned food, but will 
assure them we want to help out for the assistance 
they are giving us.” 

The Skipper dug a few little strings of beads from 
his belongings. “Better take them along, Barlow, in 
case you find bribery necessary. Never can tell 
when these fellows will lie down on the job and 
want to go bear hunting in place of the task you have 
set them.” 

As usual, the start was begun towards evening, 
when the low sun made the traveling surface hard. 
The dogs were eager for the trail and every tail was 
up with the satisfaction of the full stomach it 
represented. 

The trip was without incident except that a short 
digression was made to stop at some bird snares one 
of the natives had rigged. Four eider ducks were 
the bag. Though this country was not the regular 
breeding place of these fowl a few had apparently 
found it to their liking. 

“The North Greenland Islands are full of them,” 
said the Doctor. “I understand the tribe we saw at 
Cape York lay away thousands of eggs each season,” 

“But doesn’t that thin them out?” asked Rudd. 

“Apparently not. Gun fire is the quickest way to 
empty a wild bird’s habitat. They will stand for 
anything, even having their nests robbed at regular 
intervals, without bothering to find a new refuge. 

137 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


But once let shooting become an institution and the 
birds will lose little time in abandoning the spot for 
good.” 

Two sleeps were taken on the way over. The 
Eskimos appeared to be in no hurry and the white 
men could not impress on them the possibility that 
ice would damage the launch if she were exposed 
to the sea. In consequence neither Rudd nor Dr. 
Barlow were much surprised to find her missing 
when the spot was reached, at which the hunters 
had spied her but a few days before. 

“Nothing to do but make a search for her,” sighed 
the Doctor. “She certainly is giving us a wild goose 
chase these days. And the worst of it is I have a 
conviction that we ought to be utilizing every minute 
of our time preparing for the winter. Once the 
bitter cold comes there will be practically no means 
for increasing our meager store of supplies.” 

Rudd did not entirely agree. “Anyway, I think 
we ought to be sure about the others if we possibly 
can,” he persisted. “Captain Pike still has hopes we 
may yet see the Erik. And there is always the chance 
that our people may be in real trouble, despite the 
suspicious events of the past weeks.” 

A shout came from one of the natives further 
down the shore. He was waving his arms and 
pointing to a spot at which the rocks rose perpen- 
138 


THE WRECK 

dicular from the sea for a height of about thirty 
feet. 

“I see her!” suddenly cried Rudd, and started at a 
run for the launch. 

The Pole Star proved to be lying nearly on her 
beam ends with her stem wedged between two sunken 
boulders, half covered by the tide. Her little mast 
had been broken by impact with the ledge. And its 
wreckage with what remained of the torn and 
stranded shrouds littered her bow and one side. As 
she was not accessible, it was difficult to tell just 
how much damage had been done to her hull. 

The leading Eskimo appeared with his coil of line 
and explained that he could be lowered to the boat’s 
deck from the top of the rock wall. Once aboard he 
might be able to perceive some means for rescuing 
her from her perilous position. 

This plan proved to be a failure, due to the fact 
that all rocks at the summit of the ledge were so 
loose that one might be dislodged and fall upon the 
boat. Further injury was certainly not to be risked 
with the miserable little craft already racked by the 
terrible strain of her position. 

“Why not wait for the tide?” suggested Rudd. 

Dr. Barlow examined the beach closely. “It’s 
falling now,” he concluded, “and from the looks of 
that bit of kelp I believe we may be able to wade to 
the boat within an hour or so.” 

139 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Camp was made within sight of the wreck. In 
case the wind rose it would be necessary to make the 
best of a hasty examination. Also the hunters were 
excited over having spied half a dozen seals near 
land. Meat meant infinitely more to them than the 
white man’s troubles, and a cache at this point would 
prove a link in their chain when winter came. Thus 
it is that all through the northland one may find the 
beaches fairly lined with small pyramids of stones 
which have once covered the native’s hoard of meat. 
Sometimes for as much as two or three years such a 
supply may go untouched. But sooner or later the 
hunter and his lean-bellied starving team crawl up in 
the darkness. With an instinct born of age-long 
experience he finds again his unmarked cache, un¬ 
covers the time-ripened delicacies it contains, and 
feasts as no white man ever dreamed of feasting. 

The sledges were propped up on end as a wind¬ 
break against the never absent chill of the northern 
draft. The white man’s primus and a blubber lamp 
were soon alight. Tea was brewed and a pair ©f 
fat seal flippers boiled. All ate to repletion. Then 
the dogs were fed, a riotous proceeding in which 
every animal spent the entire time screaming for 
more, except when his dripping jaws were too full 
to yelp with. The Eskimos sang and told stories 
of other days. Doctor Barlow and Rudd forgot for 
140 


THE WRECK 

the moment their anxieties and joined in the happy 
party. 

“You see,” said the former, “it's as I told poor 
Boggs; this country is lined with the gold of happi¬ 
ness and plenty if one only knows how to make the 
best of it.” 

Two hours later it was possible to wade within a 
few feet of the Pole Star. By dragging a sledge to 
her a bridge was made that permitted the entire 
party to walk aboard. 

Dr. Barlow went first. The minute he stepped 
upon her forecastle he turned to Rudd and said: 
“Look! We must touch nothing.” He signed the 
Eskimos to do the same. 

To their amazement the launch had utterly 
changed. Except that her deck and fittings were as 
before, she was scarcely recognizable as the trim 
craft in which they had set out so hopefully from the 
Erik so short a while ago. 

“Why, half a dozen men must have lived aboard 
her!” exclaimed Rudd. He noted with a wry face 
the collection of cigarette stubs, morsels of decayed 
food, scraps of clothing, papers, soap, and other filth 
that littered her previously tidy deck and cabin. 
“Looks as if she’d been used as a prison, doesn’t 
she?” 

“Does indeed,” nodded the Doctor thoughtfully. 
“I wonder if she has?” 

141 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Rudd shot him a look. “You mean you are fol¬ 
lowing the mutiny idea ?” 

“I am—the same as you suggested. I can con¬ 
ceive of no better way to restrain a squad of unruly 
men than to dump them in a boat towed astern from 
a ship/’ 

“You think she’s been to the Erik?” 

“Of course. Look at those lumps of salt beef. 
We had none aboard on our journey. Look at those 
fragments of coffee tins and ship’s biscuit cases. 
All have come from the ship.” 

Careful search was made for some signs of Reg¬ 
gie’s misadventure. But even if there had been any 
blood spots they had long since been obliterated by 
the smears of filth and grease which defaced practi¬ 
cally every nook. 

Rudd unscrewed the fuel tank’s plug and poled in 
with a whip-stock. “Empty!” he exclaimed. “Looks 
more than ever as if she’s been used as a prison 
ship!” 

The Doctor had by this time stopped bothering 
with speculation and was busying himself with the 
more practical problem of how to make the boat 
useful again. 

“Bilges are full,” he said after lifting off the 
floor boards. “And there are evidences of leaking 
on the high side. Guess I’ll take a look without.” 

The tide had fallen another six inches, revealing 
142 


THE WRECK 


a crack in the hull just below the waterline and 
running for nearly two feet fore and aft. 

“That’s easy to fix,” observed Rudd, who was 
something of a ship’s carpenter after having had his 
own knockabout on Lake Michigan since he could 
hold a tiller and mainsheet. He scuttled down into 
the engine room and located a piece of lead sheet¬ 
ing from the tool box. In almost less time than it 
takes to tell he had tacked this temporary patch on 
the leak with a red-lead caulking and was willing to 
risk its virtue in any seaway. 

By the time extreme low tide was reached half the 
keel was visible. Except for the damage Rudd had 
repaired there seemed to be no reason why the boat 
should not float. One boulder had to be rolled 
clear and the stern was swung around so as to get 
the full buoyant effect of high water. The anchor 
and tackle were fortunately intact. Both were re¬ 
moved to lighten the bow. 

“Now there’s nothing to do but wait!” exclaimed 
Dr. Barlow wearily. “We can lash that mast up 
somehow and use a blanket for canvas until we can 
secure enough sealskins for a sail.” 

“But how can we get out to her?” asked Rudd. 
He knew the boat drew too much water to be used 
without some sort of tender. 

“Two ways,” was the prompt reply. “One, we 
can ferry ourselves out on a captive ice cake; the 
143 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


other, we can try Peary’s method of using inflated 
Eskimos’ sealskin floats as a raft.” 

One of the natives was put on watch with instruc¬ 
tions to call all hands when the water was high 
enough to float the launch. He also was cautioned 
to look out for any vagrant ice pans that might deal 
the little vessel a mortal blow at the very instant of 
her rescue. 

Scarcely had the party dropped off into well-earned 
and dreamless sleep than a wild yell startled every 
man into consciousness. Rudd leaped to his feet 
expecting to see anything from the Erik to a pack 
of mad wolves. What did meet his eyes was in a 
way more startling than either: 

Up the beach raced the watchman. As he ran he 
glanced in terror over his shoulder. His brown face 
had assumed an ashy pallor. Pebbles rattled away 
from his galloping feet. His arms waved. And 
with every breath he gave vent to a yell that awoke 
echoes from the hills. 

At first there seemed nothing to account for his 
strange actions. The beach was empty. There was 
no sound save his own clamor. Then, slowly and 
to the amazement of the watchers, there staggered 
into view the figure of a man. He was dirty and 
unkempt. His weakness scarcely permitted him to 
walk. His clothing was torn and his hands exposed 
to the raw air. His face was nearly black, except 
144 


THE WRECK 


near one eye where a swollen bruise showed yellow 
through the grime. 

“It’s Reggie!” cried Rudd and darted forward. 
The next instant he realized his mistake. The pitiful 
wreck he faced was no other than Norman, the young 
Second Officer of the Erik! 


CHAPTER XVI 
NORMAN’S PRISON 


N ORMAN had scarcely been able to conceal 
his delight when he was left in command 
of the Erik. Though he was only twenty- 
four, he had followed the sea since boyhood. As 
seaman before the mast, as coxswain in the Erik, his 
great ambition had always been to stand up on a 
ship’s bridge —his own skipper. 

At last his desire had been gratified. As he stood 
near the Erik’s wheel and waved farewell to the 
Pole Star he was in the boots of the Commanding 
Officer. Be it only for a few days at best, he was 
“Captain” Norman by virtue of the authority the 
Skipper had vested in him. He was king. His 
word was law. 

But even law is vulnerable. 

“Congratulations!” said a sarcastic voice at his 
elbow. He turned to find Mr. Menon leering at him. 
f< Captain Norman,” the First Officer uttered the title 
with a sneer of contempt, “may I have permission 
to walk about your deck for a little air ?” 

Norman’s boyish face fell. It was not his fault 
that Mr. Menon had been for the while displaced. 
146 


NORMAN’S PRISON 


Indeed, despite his ambition, he would rather have 
had authority pass by seniority to the next in order, 
namely, the villain before him, than incur this enmity 
which stole all the fun out of living. Norman had 
never had any enemies; and he was not sufficiently 
belligerent to enjoy hostility of any kind. 

He escaped from the malicious Mr. Menon as soon 
as he could and made his way into the cabin. There 
he found the Chief Engineer. This officer was years 
older than Norman; but he was not a deck man, and 
therefore not in line for command. 

“What’s up, lad?” asked the grizzled old fellow 
when he sighted Norman’s worried face. “Burden 
of command too heavy?” 

Norman studied the Chief’s square Scotch jaws, 
his strong, clean-shaven mouth, and his eyes blue as 
tempered steel. Something seemed to tell him he 
could lay his troubles before a man like this. 

“It’s Mr. Menon,” he said finally. 

The Chief smiled. “I thought as much.” He 
came closer and laid his gnarled hand upon Norman’s 
shoulder. “Laddie, I’m telling ye this for your own 
good: watch close. This Menon means not well. 
Watch him close!” 

A step sounded on the ladder. The First Officer 
entered, ignored Norman, and addressed the Chief 
with a strength of argument that belied his pretended 
weakness. 


147 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“Chief, weren’t you up here on one of the Greely 
supporting ships?” 

“Should say so!” was the emphatic answer. 
“Lucky to be alive now.” 

“And wasn’t there one of them crushed in the 
ice?” 

“Sure was; the Proteus went down forty minutes 
after being pinched off Cape Sabine. That was a 
lesson to me. Never count on getting out of this 
country until your ship’s past Hudson Bay.” 

Mr. Menon perched himself with a satisfied air 
on the edge of the cabin table. “Now just suppose,” 
he continued, “that ice came suddenly across the 
entrance to this harbor. Would we have a chance ?” 

“Not unless we ran for it.” 

“And could we count on getting back.” 

“Not absolutely.” 

“Well, what’s the answer?” He shot a glance at 
Norman, who had been looking from one to the 
other with growing anxiety at the ship’s peril, some¬ 
thing till this moment he had not fully realized. 

The Chief rubbed his bristly chin. “The answer,” 
he replied with conviction, “is to land supplies at this 
point for the party on the Pole Star. Then, if we 
get crowded out, they won’t be hungry waiting for 
us. If we can’t come back, they won’t starve to 
death waiting for relief.” 

“Then we’d better land supplies at once, hadn’t 
148 


NORMAN’S PRISON 


we?” burst out Norman impetuously. “I’ll give the 
orders now if you say so.” 

As both the older men agreed, he hurried up to 
start the breaking out of the provisions. 

The minute he was out of sight Mr. Menon 
slapped the Chief heartily on the back and exclaimed: 
“Told you he would bite. Played right along with 
us and gave the orders himself! Neat—what?” 

“You’re a clever man,” said the Chief slowly. 
“Too clever, Menon. You scare me a bit.” 

Norman returned to find the pair bending over a 
sheet of paper. 

“A note to the Skipper,” explained Mr. Menon. 
“In case we do have to get out there ought to be some 
sort of word explaining our absence.” 

The Chief pressed a blotter to the sheet and handed 
it to Norman. “What do you think of that?” he 
asked. 

Norman read the statement carefully: 

S. S. Erik, 

Erik Harbor, B.P., 

Dear Pike: July 18, 1921. 

I write this because we might get beat out by ice. 
Don’t worry. We will come back if we can. If, 
however, the Erik has unfortunately been crushed, 
you will not suffer the terrible fate of my friend 
Greely’s party. These provisions will last a good 
while. Your Ob’t Serv’t, 

Angus Whelan, Chief Engineer. 

149 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“Sounds all right,” said Norman. “I understand 
that your idea in leaving this is that we might have 
to go suddenly and can’t get ashore again.” 

The Chief nodded. He was addressing the envel¬ 
ope. “To be opened by no one but the Skipper,” he 
wrote under Captain Pike’s name. “Don’t want 
them scientific highbrows to put no double meaning 
into this,” he explained. 

The cases had already been started ashore when 
Mr. Menon suggested to Norman that they take a 
walk up to the top of the hill for a look at the ice. 
“Can’t be too careful,” he declared. “And from up 
there we can get some idea of conditions to wind- 
’ard.” 

The quartermaster and a big Swede deckhand 
named Olsen accompanied the two officers. A short 
climb took them to the summit and the excellent 
view showed no ice near enough to be threatening. 

Suddenly Mr. Menon turned to Norman with what 
seemed to be an attempt at a friendly smile on his 
ugly face. He laid his hand on Norman’s arm and 
peered encouragingly into his face. This change of 
temper was so unexpected that Norman did not 
notice the two sailors step around behind him. 

“My boy, aren’t you planning to get married?” 

“Why—yes—” stammered Norman. 

“And you’re just saving for a home in St. Johns 
before you finally hitch up?” 

150 


NORMAN’S PRISON 


“You bet,” was the eager reply. “And it’s going 
to be the greatest little place you ever saw.” 

Mr. Menon leered his appreciation. “Wouldn’t 
five thousand dollars help out?” he asked. 

“Five thousand dollars!” gasped Norman. “Why, 
the whole thing will cost only three 1 What do you 
mean?” 

The First Officer’s eyes narrowed. “Just this. 
If you will simply sit tight and let me handle the 
present situation, I’ll deposit that sum to your account 
the day we return.” 

“You don’t mean to desert the Pole Star, do you?” 

“It wouldn’t be desertion. Ice is bound to keep 
drifting past this place. We should never be so 
safe that we wouldn’t be justified in getting out any 
time. You are landing provisions. The Pole Star 
party could not possibly starve.” 

“But how would they return?” 

“They would winter here; and we could have a 
relief ship sent up next summer. The Government 
would do it as long as it is backing this expedition.” 

Norman’s fists tightened slowly. “You mean to 
say you expect me to be bribed into deserting my 
shipmates ?” 

“Exactly,” Mr. Menon shrugged his shoulders. 
“They will be reasonably comfortable. You suffer 
no risk. A large sum of money will be paid you to 
keep your mouth shut. It is very simple and easy.” 

151 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“You scoundrel!” Norman stepped forward and 
swung his clenched fist out. But before it landed 
he was seized in an iron grip and jerked heavily 
backward. He spun around in a fury and found 
himself facing the Quartermaster and Olsen, both 
nearly twice his size. 

“It’s simple enough,” repeated Mr. Menon quietly. 
“There’s no use getting excited about it. We’ve got 
you coming and going.” 

Norman at once saw the folly of trying to use 
force against such overwhelming odds. So he deter¬ 
mined to temporize if possible in order to discover 
more about the plot. He still might be able to warn 
his friends in time to save them. Well he knew 
how terrible their suffering would be if forced to 
winter with only a small amount of provisions and 
no proper gear. 

“What’s the idea, anyway?” he asked. 

“Ah,” was the guarded reply, “questions from 
friends alone ought to be answered. Prove yourself 
our friend and we may let you in on the secret. But 
remember that after your display of temper just 
now proof will not be so easy.” 

“Suppose I don’t agree—what then?” 

“That’s easy, too. You have two choices if you 
are determined to be our enemy. First, you may go 
back quietly with us and become a prisoner in your 
stateroom, letting it be known that you are ill and 
152 


NORMAN’S PRISON 

have therefore relinquished command to me. What 
do you say ?” 

“But suppose I don’t agree to that?” 

“Then we have the second and even simpler plan 
of gently leading you to yonder glacier and tumbling 
you into one of its crevasses. The shallowest one is 
at least a hundred feet deep. No one would be the 
wiser. If you didn’t break your neck you’d starve 
to death. We’d simply organize a search party and 
lead them to the wrong glacier. It’s very simple, 
and no one could possibly suspect us.” 

“I’ll take my room,” said Norman without hesi¬ 
tation. That at least had the advantage of giving 
him time to think matters over. He was too much a 
man to accept the fiendish proposal even to deceive 
Mr. Menon. And he did not doubt for a moment 
the sincerity of the plot to murder him if such a 
course fitted best into the plan. 

“And you give me your word to make no mention 
of this talk now or any other time?” 

“I do.” Norman felt justified in giving his word 
even with the knowledge that he might be forced 
some day to break it. Life or death of the absent 
party might depend upon his behavior from this 
minute on. He determined to watch his chances and 
make the best of them. Certainly the Chief must be 
on his side from the talk they had had this morning. 
And there were at least half a dozen men in the 
153 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


forecastle he could depend upon to remain faithful 
to Captain Pike. 

Back at the ship he passed the word around that he 
had been seized with cramps during the climb and 
felt forced to seek his bunk. Mr. Menon locked the 
stateroom door after he had entered and kept the 
key. Only through the keyhole was there any view 
of the cabin into which the stateroom opened. Nor¬ 
man could not see the table, but a mirror in the built- 
in sideboard reflected the image of the First Officer 
seated writing. 

“Well, how about it?” Norman heard the Chief 
say from the skylight. 

“Turned me down,” was the startling reply. “In 
his room now—not feeling well.” A harsh laugh 
followed. 

Norman’s discouragement doubled. This inter¬ 
change had proved that the Chief, notwithstanding 
his profession of enmity to Mr. Menon, was a partner 
in the scheme to desert the others. 

“I’m just writing Caverly,” continued Mr. Menon. 
“Ice looks well to the south. I’ll tell him to meet us 
in Fury Straits.” 

“How about the others catching on?” 

“Oh, I’ve fixed that. All I have to do is to use the 
word ‘Fury’ in the message and the boy will under¬ 
stand. We made it up before he left.” 

“I don’t see what you want him in for anyway,” 
154 


NORMAN’S PRISON 


came growling from the skylight. “He’s bound to 
make trouble.” 

“It’s worth it. I got him in on the way up. Ex¬ 
plained our whole scheme and offered him the thou¬ 
sand we’re panning out to the others. He said it 
wasn’t enough. So I figured out another way. He 
gets ten thousand and I get ten.” 

“How’s that?” 

“Why, I simply bring him home to his gold-lined 
dad and claim twenty thousand for having saved his 
life. Reggie darling backs me up in the claim. I 
get the wad and split fifty-fifty with him. The Old 
Man would never notice a little cash like that.” 

A loud grating sound interrupted the conversation. 
Norman’s heart sank into his boots. The anchor 
engine had begun to heave around. 


CHAPTER XVII 
MUTINY 

HE moment the First Officer left the cabin 



Norman set about seeking some means of 


escape. If he could get away from the 
ship, he might at least join the other party in time 
to avert the loss of the Pole Star. He took it for 
granted that Caverly would attempt to rejoin the 
Erik in her. Further, he far preferred to cast his 
lot with Dr. Barlow, the Skipper, and Rudd than 
to take a chance with the pirates he had found him¬ 
self among. As the anchor was being hove in, he 
had no longer reason to doubt that enough men had 
been enlisted to the evil cause to carry it out suc¬ 
cessfully. His own personal danger lay chiefly in 
the fact that, if he ever did reach New York, the 
criminals would always fear his confession of their 
perfidy. 

First he tried the door. It was locked securely 
from the outside. He owned no spare key. The 
port was much too small to hope to escape that way. 
No tools were available that would enable him to 
cut his way through the side. 


156 


MUTINY 


Suddenly he recalled that during the stifling June 
days when the Erik was lying at the East River dock 
he had arranged to ventilate his room by prying back 
a board from its forward wall. This wall did not 
belong, as might have appeared, to the next room, 
but formed part of a ventilating duct leading from 
the after hold. As the loosened board effected a 
good draft through the stateroom Norman had never 
taken the trouble to investigate it further. 

Now he took a screwdriver from his locker and 
again removed the board. Reaching his arm through 
the aperture he discovered that the pipelike space be¬ 
yond was at least a foot wide. Quickly he took off 
two more boards and peered in. By the light of a 
match he saw that the upper part of the ventilator 
ended in a small metal fitting in the deck, which 
could be unscrewed when the hold was to be aired. 
Escape this way was therefore out of the question. 
Downward lay the only course. 

A piece of line served as a ladder. Securing it to 
an eyebolt near the head of his bunk he slid down 
it into the musty silence of the hold. A rat scrambled 
away in the darkness. Muffled sounds came from 
the deck overhead. A wheezing leaked through the 
forward bulkhead against which one of the feed 
pumps was secured. 

“This doesn’t get me far,” Norman muttered to 
himself, and was about to return to his room when 
157 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


he recalled once seeing a vessel being built along 
much the same lines as the Erik. She had had a sort 
of false bottom inside the hull for protection against 
moisture, as well as a security against ice pressure 
from without. “I wonder if there’s one here?” 

To his satisfaction he discovered the same design 
had been used in the Erik. By squeezing himself 
sidewise through the narrow space he was able to 
make his way not only past the engine and firerooms, 
but clear to the crew space forward under the fore¬ 
castle deck. Here but a thin bulkhead separated him 
from the little galley where the men’s meals were 
prepared. Through a chink he could see dinner 
spread on the narrow hanging table beyond. The 
cook had apparently just burnt his hand, as he was 
swearing with great vigor and binding the injured 
member up with a piece of oily rag. 

At this moment the anchor engine suddenly stop¬ 
ped. By the time it had been running Norman 
judged the chain had been hove short and to get un¬ 
der way would take but a few minutes. He heard 
clambering steps on the ladder and the men began 
to tumble down for dinner. To his surprise they 
did not at once seat themselves at the table but drew 
up standing in a kind of audience at the further end 
of the space. 

“Are they all there?” called a voice from the hatch 
158 


MUTINY 

which Norman recognized as that of the First 
Officer. 

Olsen and the Quartermaster who had come down 
last counted noses and sung back that all were 
present. A moment later Mr. Menon himself ap¬ 
peared. 

“Men,” he began, “I want to speak a few words to 
you about our future.” He looked sharply about as 
some one shuffled a foot. 

“Pipe down!” growled Olsen. 

“As Mr. Norman is ill in his bunk—” Norman 
grinned to himself—“I have taken command. From 
the hill this morning we saw tremendous fields of ice 
being swept down from the north.” Norman smiled 
again. As far as he could recall, there was scarcely 
a pan in sight except near the beach. “The wind is 
freshening. If we have a blow and get caught in 
this hole, the ship will be lost. For that reason we 
have landed enough provisions to last the Pole Star's 
party in case we have difficulty working our way 
back.” 

Not a man stirred. There was a tension in the 
air far and beyond anything implied in the simple 
statement the First Officer had made. Norman was 
puzzled to see sly looks of pleasure steal across the 
faces of several of the seamen. Then he realized 
these must be those who were already agreed to 
mutiny. 


159 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“There’s one other thing, men.” The words came 
with deliberate slowness as if the speaker were allow¬ 
ing them to sink in while he argued. “It is just 
possible that Captain Pike and the members of the 
scientific expedition may decide to continue through 
the Northwest Passage by sledge. Eskimos live 
hereabouts and will work well for practically no pay. 
Captain Pike himself spoke to me about his doubts 
concerning ice conditions further west. He didn’t 
think the Erik could possibly get through.” 

“A lie!” breathed Norman. He had heard the 
Skipper time and again assert his belief that the 
Passage was open every year. 

“You men don’t want to go in there and starve, 
do you?” 

Half a dozen gruff “No’s!” came from the crowd. 

“Then, if we get word from the Skipper that 
he’s going on with the highbrows, I shall expect 
every man of you to back me up in taking the ship 
to safety. Incidentally, there will be a reward for 
each man that sees this thing through if matters turn 
out right.” 

Olsen and the Quartermaster swung threatening 
eyes upon the crowd. Norman saw at least two men 
wink back in understanding. 

“Now to be sure that we all are of a single mind,” 
continued the First Officer, “I want to take a vote. 
All that are willing to handle the ship faithfully un- 
160 


MUTINY 


der my direction, providing, of course, we get word 
from Captain Pike that he is going on west, raise 
their right hands.” 

There was a slight rustle as the hands went up. 
Norman counted them through the crack. He saw 
that several men hesitated. Then without warning 
a lanky Yank, whom he had never even noticed be¬ 
fore except to know that the man was in the engine 
room, stepped forward and protested. 

“This don’t sound right to me, sir.” 

“What don’t sound right?” snapped Mr. Menon. 

“This idea of agreeing to get out of here and 
leave Captain Pike and the others. Besides, I hap¬ 
pened to be up on the hill just before you were and 
I didn’t see any ice!” 

For a long moment Mr. Menon glared at the man. 
Norman thought at first he was going to strike him. 
Then he snarled: 

“Ho—I always knew you whelps in the black gang 
were cowards!” 

There was a movement towards the officer. But 
the next instant he had leaped upon the lowest rung 
of the ladder and shouted, “Get ’em, boys!” 

Olsen and the Quartermaster sprang forward. 
When they seized the Yank, as if by signal, pande- 
*monium broke loose. Blows were struck. One man 
rolled heavily under the port bunk rack. The table 
161 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


with its heavy crockery and a platter of boiled beef 
was hurled upon the deck. Crash of planking told 
Norman the framing forward had caved in under 
impact of struggling bodies. Strangely enough no 
words were spoken. The battle progressed as if 
organized, each man having his definite antagonist. 

“At ’em, boys!” cried Olsen, stepping back for a 
moment when he had tripped and thrown his man 
so stunningly upon the deck that the poor wretch 
sat stupidly until he was trampled upon by another 
pair of fighters. 

Then, abruptly as it began, the brawl was over. 
Sixteen mutineers held pantingly six conscientious 
objectors, including the Yank who had refused to be 
bribed into the treacherous plan. 

“Take them on deck,” ordered the First Officer. 
“We can deal with them there.” Norman saw him 
disappear through the hatch, followed by the six 
prisoners, each in the hands of two men. 

“Guess I’d better get back,” muttered Norman. 
“There’s not much doubt now where I stand. And 
I guess they’ll be getting out pretty soon.” 

His expectations proved correct. Scarcely had he 
regained his stateroom and had time to replace the 
boards over his tunnel than a key rattled in the lock. 
Mr. Menon entered and shut the door behind him. 

“Well, Norman,” he said cheerily, “the men have 
got together and taken a vote on my plan. Almost 
162 


MUTINY 


unanimously they accepted it. I may as well tell you 
that one or two were stupid enough to follow your 
course of reasoning and refuse. However, I believe 
I shall have no trouble bringing them around to my 
way of thinking.” 

Norman couldn’t resist leading the Officer on. 
“Did you have much difficulty in persuading the 
ones who sided with you?” 

Mr. Menon walked into the trap without hesita¬ 
tion. “I should think not,” was his hearty reply. 
“They simply gathered together forward and agreed 
to a resolution approving the whole scheme I had 
suggested. And they were nice enough to convey 
their support to me with the one or two backsliders 
bound and tied.” 

“What do you propose to do with them ?” 

Mr. Menon stroked his chin and with a knowing 
smile, said: 

“Don’t worry, my young friend. I’ll persuade 
them to see the error of their ways, mark my word.” 

The ugly smugness and cruelty of his expression 
left no doubt in Norman’s mind that the man was 
fiend enough to descend to any wickedness for the 
success of his plan. 

“How about it, Menon?” came from the hatch. 

“Just a minute, Chief; I’m seeing if our good 
shipmate Norman doesn’t feel well enough to give 
us a lift on deck? How about it, Norman?” 

163 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


The prisoner’s first impulse was to refuse. He 
abhorred the idea of being a party even remotely to 
the dastardly plot. And there was the further prob¬ 
ability that his presence on deck might strengthen the 
First Officer’s cause by making it seem he was on 
the villain’s side. On the other hand, if he was 
going to be of any assistance to the missing party 
he must let no chance escape to secure information 
in regard to the movements of the ship and the in¬ 
tentions of her captors. 

“You see we’re a bit shorthanded,” continued Mr. 
Menon, “with the Skipper absent and one or two of 
the deck hands behaving in such a way that I am 
forced to imprison them.” 

“Sure, I’ll go,” replied Norman in an attempt to 
indicate that he might be suspected of changing his 
mind about the business. 

He was allowed to take the bridge after the anchor 
had been catted and fished. Twice Mr. Menon re¬ 
minded him of his promise not to discuss present cir¬ 
cumstances in any shape or form, and threatened 
instant punishment if he disobeyed. 

From the harbor the Erik was headed directly 
across towards Baffin Land. It looked to Norman 
as if the plan was to conceal her position among the 
numerous huge bergs that floated about some miles 
off shore. Many of these were discolored in such 
164 


MUTINY 


a way that gave them nearly the appearance of a ship. 
In consequence the Erik could be run into the field 
and hidden as effectively as a deer in brush, and still 
be close enough to the shore just left to observe any 
passing craft that might visit Erik Harbor. To¬ 
wards evening the sky took on a fiery look and the 
wind freshened rapidly. 

“Hope the Pole Star is out of the ice/’ thought 
Norman, as he watched the pans begin to come spin¬ 
ning out from the shallow inlets near shore. “She 
wouldn’t last long in this wind.” 

Mr. Menon spent most of the time in the fore¬ 
mast barrel. He seemed concerned less with the ice 
than with the possibility of maneuvering the ship 
into a position from which she could not be too 
readily sighted from the land. While Norman knew 
he expected the Pole Star to be brought back by 
Reggie, there was every indication that he desired 
to sight the Pole Star before she could sight the Erik. 

Hourly the wind increased until, by the time 
Norman was relieved, the ship had to be brought out 
into the open channel lest she foul one of the bergs 
which were now beginning to careen about. She 
was swung over into the trough of the choppy sea 
and allowed to drift slowly to leeward. 

Norman ate in the mess room as usual, but no 
word was spoken except between the Chief and Mr. 

165 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

Menon who discussed their past sealing experiences 
without once referring to the Erik or her cruise. 

“Six hours ago I was Skipper!” thought Norman 
sadly, when Mr. Menon locked him in his room after 
the meal. He clenched his teeth. “And I’ll be 
Skipper yet!” he vowed. 


CHAPTER XVIII 
CRUSHED IN THE ICE 
EAR midnight Norman was roused by a 



crash that shook the Erik from stem to 


~ stern. He leaped from his bunk and stuck 
his head through the port. More swiftly he drew it 
in again. A chunk of ice the size of a beef barrel 
hurtled by and landed with a great splash in the sea 
alongside. 

“Must have struck something!” he exclaimed, and 
threw on his boots and shirt in case he should be 
needed. Thuds of running feet sounded overhead 
and there were hoarse orders from the bridge. 

He was not surprised when Olsen appeared at the 
door with word that Mr. Menon wished to see him 
on deck. 

A wild sight met him. As far as the eye could 
reach spread the ice field. A roaring wind swept 
down from the northwest; but its whistling was 
drowned in the crashing and grinding of the floes. 
Fortunately there were no bergs in the immediate 
vicinity. Only great, thick pans, anywhere from a 
few fathoms to hundreds of yards in diameter, 


167 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


dashed themselves at one another as if they were a 
multitude of huge white bulls locking horns in mortal 
combat. Here and there where the black water was 
visible between deadly ice edges the gale picked up 
sheets of spray and carried them in lacy streams 
across the awful tumult. 

“Go forward!” Mr. Menon bawled to make him¬ 
self heard above the storm, “and see what you can 
do in the way of clearing our bowsprit.” 

Norman noticed then for the first time that the 
collision had carried away the Erik's jib boom and 
bowsprit back to the ship’s stem. He dashed for¬ 
ward to the forecastle, calling to the deck hands as 
he ran: “Axes, men!” He seized one seaman who 
stood and stared without obeying. “Come on, you 
blockhead!” 

The fellow grinned sheepishly. “I can’t, sir,” he 
said. “Look.” 

Norman then saw he was lashed to the pinrail. 
And following the prisoner’s pointing finger, he saw 
five others in the port passage likewise secured. At 
once he realized they were the ones who had re¬ 
fused to mutiny and were awaiting action of the 
leader. 

For an hour the perilous work went on. It was 
necessary to free the Erik of anything that might 
impede her steerageway. In this conflict of elemental 
forces her only chance lay in getting far enough 
168 


CRUSHED IN THE ICE 

away from the battling floes not to be caught in 
their grip. 

“Stand clear forward!” came from the bridge. 
The ship quivered. Full speed ahead had been rung 
up to the engines. The men braced themselves for 
ramming. Even then the blow nearly threw them 
off their feet. 

Norman sprang to the rail and with one dexterous 
blow of his ax severed the last remaining jib stay 
that threatened to foul the vessel’s bow. 

“All clear, sir!” he sung out. “And opening 
ahead!” 

He was right. As if by an act of Providence a 
black and jagged lead ran crookedly through the 
field ahead, beginning at the vessel’s bow. A 
dash for life was the only thing that could save the 
Erik. 

“Give her all you can!” bawled the First Officer to 
the engine room. His eyes lighted suddenly upon 
two firemen that were among those lashed to the 
rail. “Free those men, Norman, and send them 
below.” In the desperate peril of the ship there was 
little risk in giving even such revolutionary spirits 
as these their chance to help. 

Black smoke poured from the funnel. As if so 
many slathering wolves were at her heel the little 
ship gathered speed. And there were wolves—white 
ones—the rending, tearing floes that tumbled and 
169 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


crashed into the lead, closing it up a few seconds 
after she had passed through. 

But luck was on her side. The Erik came out 
unscathed and less than an hour later rolled easily 
in the open water on the windward side of the field. 
All through the night and the next day the wind 
roared and howled, interspersed by flurries of snow. 
But the real danger had disappeared with the ice. 
And finally, when the gale blew itself out, there was 
little besides the missing bow spars to indicate that 
the weather had been unusual at all. 

Norman was particularly interested in this because 
he heard from his room a conversation in under¬ 
tones between the Chief and Mr. Menon that indi¬ 
cated some damage had been done to the hull. 

“Taking water along her port side,” were the 
exact words he caught. 

“Can we show it to them now ?” was Mr. Menon’s 
reply. 

“Any time you want.” And they both disap¬ 
peared on deck. 

“That’s funny,” thought Norman. “Except for 
that blow we got on the bow, I am positive there was 
no pressure heavy enough to open any of our seams.” 
Norman had done spring sealing in the St. Lawrence 
all his life and knew pretty well what a ship like the 
Erik ought to stand. 

“Guess I’ll have a look myself.” 

170 


CRUSHED IN THE ICE 


He opened the hidden escape in his room and crept 
down through the ventilator. From the hold he 
inspected every inch of both sides. There was not 
only no water coming in through any seam, but 
there was no bulging to indicate that any damage 
whatever had been done. “Guess it’s part of their 
little game,” was his conclusion. “Can’t tell what 
lie they will think up next.” 

Scarcely had he returned to his room when Mr. 
Menon entered with the exciting news that water 
was making fast in the hold and that the pumps 
were just able to keep up with it. “Come up and 
have a look,” he suggested. 

Norman followed with deep suspicion. 

At the engine room hatch were gathered all the 
crew except the prisoners who had been tied up 
again. The Chief stood on the hatch-coaming with 
an anxious look. Olsen and the Quartermaster were 
just behind him, apparently acting as a body guard 
in case anything unexpected should arise. 

“See for yourselves!” announced the Chief. Sev¬ 
eral men leaned curiously over the hatch and mut¬ 
tered imprecations at the ice. “My pumps will just 
handle it now.” 

Norman pushed his way through the crowd and 
looked below. The floor plates of the engine room 
had been removed disclosing the bottom of the ship. 
Black and oily water slushed about. A rivulet ran 
171 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


visibly down from the turn of the bilge to port, 
obviously due to a serious leak in the ship's side. 

“See that, Norman?” asked the Chief. 

Norman could not answer in his bewilderment. 
“How can it be possible,” he puzzled, “for there to 
be such a leak when I have just examined the side 
and found it intact?” 

“Hear those pumps ?” went on the Chief. 

Norman listened for a moment to the chugging 
machinery. “I certainly do, sir,” he replied enthusi¬ 
astically. 

Then a grin suddenly pulled his mouth’s corners 
nearly to his ears. By the feed pump in the corner 
he saw a small brass pipe had been rigged in such 
a way as to lead behind the bulkhead which lined the 
outboard wall of the room. Norman’s familiarity 
with the machinery immediately cleared the mystery. 
The chugging pump was simply taking water from 
the bilge and squirting it back into the bilge again 
through this brass pipe higher up, making the stream 
that seemed to come through the ship’s supposedly 
injured side. 

“Well, I’ll be jiggered!” exclaimed Norman when 
he reached his room again. “I’ve heard of fake oil 
wells and fake gold mines; but this is the first time 
I ever heard of a fake leak! What in sin and thun- 
deration can be the idea?” For a solid hour he sat 
and puzzled over the riddle. 

172 


CRUSHED IN THE ICE 


That Mr. Menon’s scheme was to seize the ship 
and abandon the Pole Star party was clear enough. 
He had said as much to Norman. But what the 
profit in such a course could be was beyond imagina¬ 
tion. It was conceivable that he might have some 
wild thought of gathering gold, or furs, or even at¬ 
tacking some merchant vessel in the manner of an 
old-fashioned pirate. But in these days of strict 
laws on the high seas it would be well-nigh impos¬ 
sible to carry out successfully any such desperate 
undertaking. Norman knew this, and up to the 
present had believed Mr. Menon insane even to con¬ 
template such a course as he was following. But 
the new freak Norman had just seen, an artificial 
leak made just to deceive a few stupid deck hands, 
could be listed as nothing short of the act of a mad¬ 
man. 

“The trouble is,” groaned Norman, “that it is so 
unlikely Olsen and the Quartermaster and the Chief 
should all be lunatics in the same way.” He scratched 
his tousled head. “I wonder,” he asked himself, 
“if it is myself that is the imbecile and imagining 
all these nightmares? If so, I wish I’d wake up!” 

A distant commotion on deck roused him from his 
melancholy reflections. As the door was locked and 
the rumpus seemed to come from forward, he used 
his usual means of escape to make his way to the 
forecastle bulkhead via the hold. Shouts and yells 
173 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


were here heard much more distinctly; but, as the 
space was empty, he saw no use in hazarding discov¬ 
ery of his secret by remaining. He returned and 
clambered back to his stateroom. 

To his horror the door was wide open. In his 
absence some one had come and gone. Who could 
it have been? 

He did not have to wait long to find out that 
word had been passed of his secret. Before he had 
time to collect his wits and think up some sort of 
explanation or excuse, Mr. Menon came tumbling 
down the cabin ladder and dashed around the table. 

“So this is the way you treat my kindness in let¬ 
ting you have the freedom of the ship, is it?” 

Norman thought it better to let the man cool his 
wrath in speech. So he kept silent. 

“Suppose you’ve been spying on us all around the 
decks, eh?” The First Officer’s guilty conscience 
was apparent. “Now get busy and show us where 
this rat hole of yours runs to.” 

Norman struck a match and held it down the 
ventilator. “Only down the hold, sir.” He pointed 
to the cases dimly revealed by the flickering light. 
“I certainly can’t make trouble for you down there, 
I had to do something to amuse myself while I was 
tied up in this room. That the pipe was there I 
discovered last month. Thought I’d have the fun 
of exploring it.” 


174 


CRUSHED IN THE ICE 


But Mr. Menon was not convinced. Sending for 
the Quartermaster who was of much the same 
slender build as Norman, he directed him to examine 
not only the shaft but all spaces to which it gave 
access in the hull of the ship. 

“Can’t get out that way,” the man testified when 
he returned from his exploration. “It’s possible, 
however, to go forward of the engine room and see 
into the forecas’le.” 

“How about the side of the ship?” snapped Mr. 
Menon. 

“See it all—especially along by the engine room.” 

Mr. Menon turned in fury to Norman. “So you’ve 
been sneaking around, have you, and prying into all 
my affairs ?” 

Before Norman had time to answer the door was 
slammed in his face and the key turned. Ten min¬ 
utes later Mr. Menon reopened it. 

The outer cabin was empty. 

“Come out here, you young fool!” 

Norman came, ready for anything. 

“Now follow me.” Mr. Menon led him through 
the Captain’s cabin to a small door opening in the 
bulkhead near the head of the bunk. He signed 
Norman to enter. “You’re too dangerous to be 
trusted!” was his parting shot as he crashed the door 
shut and bolted it from the outside. 

In the darkness Norman felt his way around the 
175 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


little cell. There was no light save one gray beam 
that struggled through a chink in the door. Heavy 
timbers of the ship ran across the floor in two places, 
providing a place to sit. Except for this the room 
was devoid of any article. 

“Solitary confinement!” chuckled Norman, refus¬ 
ing to be downcast. 

At regular intervals the Quartermaster brought 
him food and water. The man did not seem par¬ 
ticularly unfriendly, but always lingered a few min¬ 
utes to chat with the prisoner and apprise him of 
general conditions on deck. He admitted the ship 
was under way again and headed south; but would 
give no information about the plans. Indeed, Nor¬ 
man finally came to the conclusion that only Mr. 
Menon, the Chief, and possibly Caverly, had any 
real conception what the mystery was. The sailors 
were content to pick that side of the quarrel which 
promised them the greatest profit. So long as they 
received the money Mr. Menon had offered they 
were not greatly concerned with the means by which 
he was able to raise funds to pay them. 

On the second day of this miserable existence 
Norman distinctly heard the puffing of a motor boat 
coming faintly through the ship’s side. He put his 
ear to the oaken wall and was surprised at the 
clearness with which sounds came through. He 
heard Mr. Menon’s hail: “Pole Star , ahoy!” and 
176 


CRUSHED IN THE ICE 


reply came back in a voice he recognized as Reggie’s: 
“Coming alongside, sir. I’m alone.” 

Norman’s curiosity was somewhat gratified when 
the Quartermaster brought him in his lunch. 
“Didn’t the launch return?” he asked with what in¬ 
difference he could command. 

“Yes, sir!” exclaimed the sailor. “Mr. Caverly 
came back in her. Brought good news, too.” 

“What?” asked Norman eagerly. 

“Well, I don’t know as how I ought to tell you, 
being as Mr. Menon says I oughtn’t to talk too 
much when I’m down here.” Then he changed the 
subject. “Say, the boy had a nasty cut on his 
shoulder. Said he’d fallen off an iceberg trying to 
get some fresh water. Looks to me like he’d been 
burned by a bullet though. I’ve seen the same in 
the war when a fellow’d get just missed.” 

“That’s too bad,” Norman sympathized. “But 
go on and tell me the news. Goodness knows, it’s 
rotten enough down in this hole with nothing to 
think about.” 

“I may as well,” the other mused. “Mr. Menon 
has called all the gang up and told them about it.” 

Norman bit his lip in suspense. He was afraid to 
seem too anxious lest the man should become sus¬ 
picious and tell nothing. Finally the story came out: 

“Why, it’s news from the Skipper,” the Quarter¬ 
master explained. “Mr. Caverly says he has decided 
177 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

to go on with the Pole Star's party and travel with 
the Eskimos. They had a fine camp on the other 
side of the peninsula, and by this time are probably 
a long way west. Captain Pike sent word for Mr. 
Menon to take the ship on south/' 

“It's a lie!” blurted Norman. “A low-down lie!" 


CHAPTER XIX 


PIRACY 


W HEN Rudd dashed forward to meet the 
disheveled Norman on the beach the 
thought struck him that of all surprises 
they had anticipated this was by far the greatest. 
Both he and Dr. Barlow had realized that they might 
discover Reggie had perished; or the Pole Star had 
been wrecked; or the Erik crushed in the ice and 
lost. But no flight of imagination could have re¬ 
vealed to them the sight of Norman reeling like a 
drunken man, covered with dirt, and bearing the 
aspect and general appearance of a castaway who 
has just suffered unspeakable tortures in his efforts 
to reach safety. 

“You poor fellow!” exclaimed Rudd, as he held 
out his arms lest the vagrant collapse. He was just 
in time to prevent Norman from toppling upon the 
gravel. Rudd realized the happy luck that had 
brought them to the spot at this opportune time. 
Another hour and Norman might have succumbed 
to his weakness. 

“Get him into your sleeping bag,” commanded the 
Doctor. “And I’ll prepare some broth.” He took 
179 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Norman's temperature to make sure there was noth¬ 
ing radically wrong besides his utter exhaustion, 
which made it impossible for him to talk. “Sleep 
and dry clothes are what he principally needs," was 
the Doctor's professional advice. 

“Looks as if they’d been having some sort of 
trouble, even more than we imagined," suggested 
Rudd. 

The Doctor adjusted the primus and threw a pinch 
of tea into the pot before replying. “Does indeed, 
Rudd. Incidentally this youngster Norman is to my 
mind one of the most trustworthy men we had 
aboard. That he should turn up in this condition 
is really positive proof that the wrong crowd is in 
command of the Erik.” 

“Did you notice his wrists?" 

“I did. Badly bruised and swollen. They will 
need attention when he wakes up. Had you any 
particular idea about them?" 

“Only that they looked as if the wounds might 
have been caused by lashing a line around them too 
tightly." 

“You mean he might have been bound?" 

“And gagged too,” added Rudd. “His cheeks 
had gag-marks running nearly to his ears.” 

Norman stirred in his bag. “I won’t do it!" he 
exclaimed. “I won't. Go ahead—if—you—dare!" 

Dr. Barlow smiled. “Man's talk, Rudd, even in 
180 


PIRACY 

his dreams! He’s living again the last few days, the 
poor devil.” 

Not until Rudd saw Norman on his feet the next 
day could he believe such quick recovery was possible 
after a man had been in the terrible condition Nor¬ 
man had seemed to be in the night before. 

“Youth comes back quickly,” observed the Doctor. 
“Now tell us something about it, Norman.” 

“There’s not much to tell, sir,” was the modest 
reply. “Mr. Menon seized the Erik and tried to 
get me to join him in some scheme which I never 
entirely understood. Reggie Caverly came back in 
the Pole Star. I was able to get away in her, got 
wrecked, and here I am.” 

The story sounded simple enough but it did not 
explain Norman’s condition when he first appeared. 
And both Rudd and Dr. Barlow were so incredulous 
of the First Officer’s ability to carry out his nefarious 
plan that they insisted on details. 

“Were the men willing to join Mr. Menon?” 
asked Rudd. “I knew they liked him pretty well; 
but I didn’t think the whole company would desert 
a fine Skipper like Captain Pike.” 

“No, they weren’t. Five of them rebelled at the 
idea of mutiny. First they were tied up on deck. 
When Reggie returned they were put in the Pole 
Star astern without food or water or blankets. Once 
a day a small ration of raw salt beef and hard bread 
181 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


was hove over to them. While the ship towed them 
along, they were always cold and miserable and 
hungry. After a day of this treatment all gave in 
but one. He held out another twenty-four hours, 
and then agreed to do as the others had done—sign 
an agreement that every act of Mr. Menon’s was 
perfectly all right.” 

“But how about the Chief?” Rudd had become 
very fond of the old fellow and couldn’t believe him 
capable of joining Mr. Menon’s lawlessness. 

“He went, too.” 

Dr. Barlow seemed not to be surprised. “Don’t 
think too hard of him, boys. I happen to know he 
has an invalid wife who has been bedridden for 
years. Now she is gradually losing her eyesight. 
Only an operation will save her. His desire for 
money to give her back what little comfort she can 
enjoy is sufficient to lead him into any scrape.” 

“The worst part,” Norman went on, “was when 
they discovered I could get out of my room. Mr. 
Menon locked me into a lazaretto with no porthole. 
I stayed there three days and would have been there 
yet if Reggie hadn’t come into the cabin for some 
charts just as I was having my food brought around. 
The Quartermaster had forgotten to put some water 
on the tray and told Reggie to keep an eye on me 
while he went back to the galley. 

“I asked Reggie where we were going. 

182 


PIRACY 


“ ‘Home,’ he said, with a grin that made me sore. 

“He was evidently pleased to see me in such a 
mess. I guess I was not myself, anyway, with hav¬ 
ing been cooped up so long. So I beat it right out 
into the cabin and told him what I thought of him 
and his whole parcel of murderous friends. 

“ 'Well, what are you going to do about it?’ said 
he. 

“ 'This V I came right back at him, and gave him 
a wallop across the jaw that must have made him see 
stars. He opened his mouth to yell for help. But 
before he could let out a squeak I grabbed the pillow 
off the bunk and wrapped it around his head.” 

“Pity you didn’t give him a good thrashing then 
and there!” exclaimed Rudd, ready to burst with 
all the feeling that had been bottled up inside him 
since the Pole Star’s theft. 

“Don’t know but I might have,” Norman went 
on, “but just then the Quartermaster came back. 
He threw the water, mug and all, at the back of my 
neck, and jumped on me with both fists going at 
once. I was so mad I could have licked them both; 
but lack of exercise had taken some of my strength 
so they had me down in a couple of minutes and 
tied up my feet and hands with a lanyard out of the 
Skipper’s bag.” 

The speaker paused and looked ruefully at his 
wrists which the Doctor had bandaged up. 

183 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“You’re lucky they didn’t lynch you!” put in 
Rudd; “I doubt if they would stop at anything 
now.” 

“No,” said Dr. Barlow, “they won’t spill blood if 
they can possibly avoid it. Their whole game de¬ 
pends on deceiving the men into thinking there is 
full justice on their side. And, whatever explanation 
is given when the Erik gets back to the States, you 
may be sure it will seem to our friends that every¬ 
thing is perfectly all right.” 

“You mean they won’t send a relief up for us?” 

“Not at all. I am beginning to give Menon credit 
for being clever enough to manufacture a story that 
will hold water. And, while I can’t yet see where 
his profit can come in from stealing the ship, I do 
believe he is counting on reaching home this season 
and cleaning up before we get back. That is what 
irritates me so. If we could only have the luck to 
head him off and be there first, we would see him 
in jail before any of his crowd could escape.” 

“I quite agree with you, sir,” said Norman. 
“Even the Quartermaster and Olsen who were closest 
to him were not aware that there was anything 
radically wrong. I think they had some vague idea 
that your plan to go through the Northwest Passage 
was a foolhardy one, and that Captain Pike was 
deceived into joining you. The money Mr. Menon 
was promising them, Olsen told me, was to come 
184 


PIRACY 


from the Company because Mr. Menon was saving 
the ship. The rest of the crew were probably de¬ 
luded into the same idea.” 

“Do go on,” interrupted Rudd, “and tell us what 
happened after they tied you up in the cabin. I can’t 
see how in the thunderation you ever escaped!” 

Norman laughed. “I didn’t exactly escape. They 
gave me the chance to get away.” 

“You don’t mean to say they actually let you go?” 

“Well, it amounted to the same thing. Mr. 
Menon was so furious that he ordered me dumped 
into the Pole Star. Olsen doubled my lashings be¬ 
fore I went over the side. Of course it was done 
while the ship’s company were asleep, with only the 
Quartermaster and Olsen on watch. I was gagged 
also in order to prevent my crying out and letting 
any one know I was down in the launch.” 

“But how about food?” 

“They didn’t give me any. Guess they figured 
that if I got good and cold and hungry I might come 
around to their way of thinking. Regular piracy— 
torture a man into doing what you want him to!” 

“That’s the North for you,” put in the Doctor. 
“ ‘Never a law of God nor man goes north of fifty- 
three,’ or something like that, is the tradition. And 
this pretty much proves it.” 

Norman shrugged his shoulders. “I’ll have the 
law on them yet!” he blurted. “The scoundrels!” 

i85 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“Guess that’s the way we all feel,” assented Rudd, 
clenching his fists. “But what did you do then?” 

“First of all I realized how quickly my strength 
would go. I had had nothing to eat since breakfast, 
and only a bit of seal meat then. The line around 
my wrists was so tight that the flesh began to swell, 
and the pain was so great inside an hour that I 
felt dizzy from it and the choking gag. I lay on 
deck in the Pole Star's cabin. I tried to roll over 
to see if I could hump myself to the hatch and 
possibly get out where one of the seamen might see 
me and lend a hand by throwing over a knife or 
something. On the fourth attempt the boat suddenly 
gave a lurch. It was just enough to let me flop over 
on my face. From that position I wriggled to my 
knees and was able to move as far as the latch on 
the mess gear locker at the forward end. You may 
remember this latch had a sharp catch. By working 
the line on my wrists back and forth on this catch 
I managed to cut it. Then I untied the gag and 
loosed the lashings on my ankles.” 

“Gosh! You must have been all in after that!” 
exclaimed Rudd admiringly. “No wonder you 
looked fagged out when we saw you.” 

Norman smiled. “That was the smallest part of 
the job. I had scarcely got loose when I heard 
voices on the deck above. Apparently some one was 
coming down to see how I was getting along. For 
186 


PIRACY 


a minute I didn’t know whether to wait and try to 
overcome them, or to return to my lashings and 
pretend I was still tied up. I decided the latter was 
the safest plan and quickly put the lines back on and 
the gag in my mouth. 

“Scarcely had I plumped down on the deck again 
when Mr. Menon came in followed by Reggie and 
the Quartermaster. ‘Norman,’ he said, ‘I have 
brought Mr. Caverly down to tell you with his own 
lips that the Skipper has decided to go west with 
Dr. Barlow, and has sent word that he wished me to 
go with the Erik / He then took the gag out of my 
mouth. 

“ ‘Anything to say?’ he asked. 

“ ‘Only what I said before,’ I told him. ‘I think 
Caverly is a liar; and I hate to add what I think of 
you.’ ” 

“Good work!” burst in Rudd. “I guess that let 
him know how he stood!” 

“Sure did. He was so mad he couldn’t speak for 
a few minutes. Reggie was for taking me up on 
deck and giving me some punishment—old-time cat- 
o’-nine-tails I guess he had in mind. But Mr. Menon 
got a hold on himself and finally put the gag back in 
twice as tight as before. ‘He needs a little more 
treatment,’ he told Reggie, and they left. I waited 
until they had got up on deck and then jerked out of 
the lashing again. I found there were about thirty 
187 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

gallons of gas in the tanks. This was enough to 
take me back to you once I got clear. Soon as 
everything was quiet I cut the painter. As the Erik 
was making about six knots I dropped astern pretty 
rapidly. But there was no wind so I was afraid to 
start the engine too soon lest they hear me. Then 
it began to snow and blotted out everything. I 
started up the engine right away and headed for the 
cache. But as the compass was considerably on the 
blink, I took up so far north of Erik Harbor that I 
had some trouble knowing just where I was. I 
backed off and coasted down till I thought I had hit 
the place, and headed in again. Then it began to 
blow and drift until I couldn’t see my hand before 
my face. First thing I knew I jammed in here 
against the rocks. As the fuel ran out just about 
then, there was nothing to do but wade ashore. I 
was afraid to lie down and sleep. Mr. Menon had 
stripped the launch of all blankets. And I’d have 
frozen to death if I had tried to stay ashore; also 
it wasn’t safe to stick aboard with the Pole Star high 
and dry on the beach. The only thing to do was 
to try to return to the cache in hope I might find 
some of you there. I had just come back from the 
hill after looking for a trail when you showed up.” 

At the end of this long recital Dr. Barlow leaned 
forward and held out his hand. “Norman,” he 
said, “I want to shake hands with a man . You had 
188 


PIRACY 


the grit to stick it out for your convictions, not only 
against the temptation of bribery, but in face of 
what must have looked pretty much like certain death 
sooner or later.” 

“Thank you, sir,” Norman stammered. 

Rudd put out his hand. “Them’s my sentiments, 
too, old man!” he exclaimed, “and we’re going to get 
that gang of pirates too; you watch!” 


CHAPTER XX 
RED MEAT 


H IGH tide took the Pole Star clear of the 
rocks and thereafter she swung easily to 
her anchor. The party’s troubles, how¬ 
ever, were only just begun. Some means must be 
had of reaching her from the beach. Her mast and 
sail had to be repaired and rigged. And there was 
the ever harrying anxiety about ice. 

“We mustn’t lose a moment getting out of here,” 
urged the Doctor. “One pan would undo all that 
we have done.” 

Two sealskin floats were secured from the 
Eskimos and lashed together. These floats are made 
by skinning a seal literally through its nose. The 
hunter begins at the animal’s lips and works his 
hand gradually back along the neck until he can 
peel the hide off as if it were an umbrella cover. It 
is then turned inside out and cured in the sun. The 
women chew its fat out and roll it well to make it 
pliable. An ivory mouthpiece is inserted at the 
muzzle end and the float can then be inflated like a 
football. 

Dr. Barlow asked one of the men to let him have 
190 


RED MEAT 


several crosspieces off his sledge. “We can make it 
up to you from the launch,” he said. 

But the native refused with the explanation that 
he had to collect meat for the winter and could not 
risk wrecking his only vehicle for transporting it. 

Then Norman had the bright idea of suggesting 
that the hunter be allowed to accompany them on the 
trip to the cache which was not over ten miles up 
the coast. “We shall probably see walrus on the 
way. Since we have to sail it will be easy to ap¬ 
proach the animals. As reward for this hunter’s 
help we can present him with the meat of one.” 

This plan was finally got through the Eskimo’s 
thick skull and he promptly ripped two slats from his 
sledge. These were lashed across the floats. A piece 
of sealskin with several bits of driftwood were then 
fashioned into the blade of an oar with a harpoon 
as a handle. 

“Remarkable what you can do,” the Doctor ex¬ 
claimed, “when put to it!” 

“I should say so!” agreed Rudd. “Why, I can 
remember thinking how ingenious I was to get 
along in the Maine woods camping with a tent and 
a whole collection of high-class equipment. Think 
of it! The temperature was nice and warm. There 
were a million feet of timber growing within a hun¬ 
dred yards of my camp. Plenty of fresh water 
splashing by in a trout brook full of fish. When it 
191 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


rained I thought what hardships I was enduring!” 

Norman laughed in appreciation of the com¬ 
parison. “And now you haven’t anything but a 
primus and a hundredweight of seal meat, eh?” 

“Pretty nearly that. Then there’s this snowstorm 
business that comes around every other day; no 
wood to burn; no game to get—that is, for a tender¬ 
foot like me.” 

“And yet,” put in the Doctor, “we’re as happy and 
warm and dry as if we were home, and having twice 
the fun, what?” 

One of the hunters stepped up and began to 
jabber. He pointed excitedly at the Pole Star and 
then to a large floe several hundred yards out. “He 
says,” Dr. Barlow interpreted, “that he has been 
watching that piece of ice for the last few minutes. 
The tide is going to bring it squarely on to the 
Pole Star if we don’t get her out.” 

Camp was hurriedly broken without waiting to 
repair the mast. The dogs belonging to the Eskimo 
who was to accompany the boat party were divided 
among his friends with the understanding they 
would meet him at the cache. Blankets and stove 
were ferried aboard with the raft, Norman manning 
the extemporized scull. Finally the anchor was hove 
up and the launch drifted away helplessly just in 
time to escape for the fourth time being annihilated 
by the evil spirits of the cruel Northland. 

192 


RED MEAT 


The huge floe came in as the Eskimo had pre¬ 
dicted; but, instead of crashing past the land, it 
grounded gently with one corner a hundred yards 
wide upon the beach and hung there until the next 
capricious wind or tide should pull it off. This 
proved a godsend for these in the boat. The Pole 
Star's painter was simply passed to a mooring on 
the ice and secured there until the spliced mast again 
stood bravely in its step and the much patched sail 
spread welcomely to the breeze. 

“Well, here we are again, boys!” said the Doctor 
cheerily. “Still on our way; busy, and a reason 
for it.” 

Neither Rudd nor Norman replied with much in¬ 
terest to this philosophical sally. They were too 
busily engaged in watching the hunter prepare for 
the walrus that might be seen on the trip. 

“Same gear he used on seal,’’ explained Rudd. 
“Except that the detachable barb on the end of his 
harpoon is heavier.” 

“Has to be,” put in the Doctor. “The walrus’ 
hide is one of the thickest and toughest skins in the 
animal kingdom. Even the elephant or rhinoceros 
are not more efficiently covered than this hippopo¬ 
tamus of the north.” 

“Hippopotamus is right,” commented Norman. 
“The first time I came up here we killed one weigh¬ 
ing over three thousand pounds.” 

193 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


The Eskimo interrupted by asking Rudd to help 
him coil his line down. On top of the coil he laid 
the float. Beside this he propped a small drag about 
two feet square. It consisted simply of a wooden 
frame across which was spread a backing of skin. 
A bridle led from the four corners of the drag to 
the line carrying the float. 

“What’s the idea?” asked Rudd. 

The Eskimo laughed, and with a series of graphic 
gestures showed how he harpooned the walrus. The 
coil of line ran out with the float at its end to show 
which way the walrus was going. The drag simply 
tailed along behind to impede the animal’s progress. 
Finally he would become tired and go slow enough 
to be overtaken and stabbed with the small iron- 
tipped harpoon or lance. 

The hunter was poking himself in his ribs to 
illustrate how this lance penetrates the victim’s lungs 
and finally kills him. Suddenly he stopped and in a 
hoarse whisper said something in his own tongue. 
Rudd followed his pointing finger and saw what 
appeared to be a mound of dark brown earth piled 
on a large floe about a quarter of a mile north of 
them. 

“Walrus, as I live!” exclaimed Norman. 

The Doctor stood up and balanced the tiller be¬ 
tween his ankles. “Ten of them at least,” he esti¬ 
mated. “Rudd, you and Norman join the Eskimo 
194 


RED MEAT 


in the bow and I will handle the boat. Have your 
rifles ready with magazines filled. Don’t shoot un¬ 
less you can hit within two inches of the creature’s 
eye. His brain is really the only spot vulnerable to 
a rifle bullet. And that is so small that there is no 
use shooting at any great distance.” 

“Shall I use your rifle, sir?” 

“No, its bullets wouldn’t think of penetrating the 
skull. I’ve seen thirty rounds from a carbine flatten 
up against one of their skulls without ever stopping 
the animal.” 

As the Pole Star drifted slowly down upon the 
sleeping herd the three men in the bow and the 
Doctor at the helm stood as if blocks of stone. 
Every few minutes two or three of the great animals 
would raise their heads and look about. This is 
the usual custom of sea animals that sleep out of 
water. Easily the floe might be swept upon the 
beach, be boarded by wolves or bears and the walrus 
calves murdered before their parents could get them 
over the side. 

While the boat was still out of safe rifle shot a 
cow cruised up with her young one. The little fel¬ 
low—he couldn’t have weighed over five hundred 
pounds—squealed and puffed in his efforts to haul 
himself up with his weak little flippers. The mother 
grunted and nudged him with her great tusked snout 
until he finally wriggled up. Then with a splash 
195 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


that sent ripples clear to the motor boat, she boosted 
her own ponderous weight upon the floe and 
wallowed over to the massive collection of her 
friends and relatives. 

Closer and closer crept the boat. To the walrus 
she must have appeared only as a mass of dirty ice, 
such as they were accustomed frequently to see. 
Little did they suspect the fusillade of lead that was 
stored in the black barrels which Rudd and Norman 
rested upon the forward rail. 

Once Rudd made as if to shoot, but the Eskimo 
nudged him with his boot and shook his head. It 
seemed impossible that they could get any nearer and 
not have the game realize their peril. Rudd had not 
yet fully appreciated how seldom human kind were 
ever present in these distant waters. Later he dis¬ 
covered that with the exception of the wily foxes 
he could fool nearly any northern animal into be¬ 
lieving he meant them no harm if he only knew how 
to go about it. 

When the boat’s bow was not ten feet from the 
edge of the floe the largest of the walruses, a great 
bull from his thick tusks and colossal size, suddenly 
raised his head with a loud snort of warning. In¬ 
stantly every animal in the herd was awake. The 
cow was the first to move. With a deep bellow of 
fear she slid towards her child and pushed it into 
196 


RED MEAT 


the water, diving after it just before Dr. Barlow 
sprang to his feet and yelled, “Shoot!” 

For sixty seconds Rudd lived the most exciting 
moments of his life. Fast as he and Norman could 
pump cartridges into their repeating rifles, they fired 
into the furious mob of animals. It was not wild 
firing either. Both realized the preciousness of 
ammunition and took good aim before each shot. 

But far above the banging discharges of the guns, 
rose the bellowing of the walrus. “U — RR — L—Kl 
U — RR —L— K!” was the cry they gave. The 
calves squealed; the cows fairly roared. The cries 
of the males, however, were more in defiance, and 
all except one old fellow stood their ground and 
made a tragic show of fight. 

One by one they rolled over, crimsoning the white 
snow with their blood. By the boys' excellent shoot¬ 
ing only two were wounded in such a way that they 
could get clear of the pan. One of these, a fat cow, 
floated. The other, a younger animal, floundered 
about and then flung up his hind flippers for a dive. 
But scarcely had his tusks split the water's surface 
when the Eskimo let drive. The harpoon struck the 
thick hide with a resounding thud, broke clear of its 
barb and floated. The line ran out with a whirr, 
carrying float and drag along with it. 

“Let him go!” cried the Doctor as Rudd made a 
197 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

motion to take a turn with the line around the for¬ 
ward bitts. “We’ll get him later.” 

“But—” Rudd began to protest and then heard a 
chuckle. The Eskimo pointed astern where the wal¬ 
rus had already come up to blow. He was endeavor¬ 
ing in his wild rage to attack the float. But fast as 
he would rush for it the line attached to his own 
back would drag it under. 

All boarded the floe and tied up the Pole Star 
while the necessary butchering was done. 

“No skinning here, thank goodness!” exclaimed 
Norman. 

Rudd remembered his sealing experience and 
asked why not. 

“Because the Eskimos feed skin, hair, and all to 
their dogs. They leave it attached to the meat. As 
the thick hide is very indigestible it stays for a long 
time in the stomach of the dog and so makes it 
possible for him to go a great while without feed¬ 
ing. I have known them to serve out meals only 
once in ten days to a team.” 

“That’s great reasoning!” laughed Rudd, wield¬ 
ing a long knife in a way he learned years before 
over the carcass of a Canadian moose. “Say, man, 
this fellow certainly is tough!” 

Luckily the wind was carrying the pan in the 
direction the party wished to go. By the time the 
seven walrus were cut up and the wounded one re- 
198 


RED MEAT 


covered from his float, the little point of land that 
marked Erik Harbor was in sight. 

“We’ve got at least three tons of meat,” observed 
the Doctor. “Of course it is out of the question to 
think of getting this ashore on one trip. Therefore I 
suggest that we don’t take any at first but sail in light. 
We can get some fuel at the cache and return for the 
meat. Certainly we are justified in expending oil 
for such a supply of fresh meat as this.” 

As the plan met with instant approval the Pole 
Star was set adrift and her sail spread for the short 
tack across to the Harbor. 

“Wonder if those bear cubs have been back to see 
their mother?” he muttered. “Say, Norman, did 
you know our expedition gave an entertainment to 
some polar bears last week ? Boggsy of course went 
in and busted up the party, otherwise it would have 
been a great success.” 

But there was no sign of the marauders. With 
the seal-float raft four cases of fuel were quickly 
ferried out to the launch and she returned to the 
ice. The Doctor and Rudd remained at the cache 
to fix up the house the latter and Boggs had built of 
the cases. By nine p. M. the meat was all ashore and 
safely cached. The sledging party blew in later 
and reported having seen musk ox tracks just be¬ 
yond the hill. As the harbor was free from ice and 
199 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

well sheltered the Pole Star was anchored in real 
security. 

“Things certainly are looking up!” exclaimed 
Rudd. “What do you think, Norman?” 

“They are for me, anyway,” was the prompt reply. 
“This time night before last I didn’t know whether 
I was ever going to live to tell my tale or not!” 


CHAPTER XXI 


THE ARCTIC PALL 

t | iWO days were occupied at the cache putting 
everything in shipshape order. The meat 
was buried under the rocks Eskimo fash¬ 
ion, and a protecting wall of flat stones piled around 
the cases to keep the bears out. 

“How about the natives stealing our share of the 
walrus?” asked Rudd. After his experience with 
bears he felt distrustful of all arctic creatures. 

“Not the slightest danger,” said Dr. Barlow. “A 
meat cache is sacred to the Eskimo. He realizes 
that the man who laid it down may some day 
struggle up in the darkness of the arctic night and 
possibly in a starving condition. If he fails to find 
the cache as he left it he will certainly starve. Thus 
a man who has removed the meat can be said to be 
the traveler’s murderer.” 

“But suppose a man finds himself in such a fix 
and knows a friend’s cache is near by ?” 

“Under such circumstances he is justified in help¬ 
ing himself. It is Eskimo law, however, that he 
must at the earliest possible moment send word to 
the owner of the cache that it no longer exists.” 


201 



THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Enough fuel was put aboard the Pole Star to 
take her around to the camp on the other side of the 
land. Then her available cargo and deck space were 
filled with provisions, including a good supply of 
meat which, the Doctor explained, could be used to 
remunerate the natives for their help. 

The trip back was without incident. Several herds 
of walrus were passed, but no killing was done as 
there was no possibility of landing the meat along 
such forbidding shores. To slaughter the game 
wantonly would not only be a waste of ammunition, 
but a sin against the unwritten law of the wilder¬ 
ness. 

Captain Pike was deeply affected by Norman’s 
story about the Erik. “I have suspicions,” he said 
fiercely, “that are better founded than I can divulge 
at present. But just let me get back and I’ll have 
that gang of pirates behind the bars before you can 
say Jack Robinson!” 

The Doctor did not agree. “I give Menon too 
much credit for cleverness to admit that he will open 
himself to any story that we may bring back.” 

“And also,” added Norman, “you must remember 
that he is taking pains to keep the crew in the dark 
about the true state of affairs. They will almost 
unanimously support his actions from a point of 
view of safety to the ship and her crew.” 

The Doctor did his best to soothe the old Skipper. 


202 


THE ARCTIC PALL 


“It’s the old story, Pike. A fiend like Menon knows 
that beyond the limit of civilization a man must be 
measured by motives. If he appears to have acted 
to the best interests of his company, despite the true 
state of affairs, the worst that can be held against 
him is that he made an error of judgment.” 

But the Skipper was obdurate. “I refuse to dis¬ 
cuss it any more,” he declared with almost violent 
finality; “I know some things that you people don’t. 
Menon believes he can get away with murder. He 
can’t, no matter what you say. That’s all there is 
to it!” 

Thereafter the Erik as a topic of conversation was 
banned in the presence of her Captain. 

Dr. Barlow exerted his greatest efforts and in¬ 
genuity to keep the party occupied. Not only was 
there vital need of preparing for the winter with 
utmost thoroughness, but he fully realized the effect 
of arctic isolation on the minds of men. 

An example of what might happen later came in 
the week following their return from the cache. 
One of the usual summer storms which had been 
brewing to the south of west broke with great fury 
while the party slept. Boggs waked his companions 
with the cry, “I’m smothering!” 

“How ?” grunted the Doctor without even opening 
his eyes. 

Rudd, startled, sat up to find he, too, was being 
203 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


buried under the same white blanket that nearly- 
covered Boggs’ head and shoulder where he had 
drawn the skins over them. Drifting snow had 
swirled around the protected entrance of the hut 
and lay nearly a foot deep clear back to the center. 

“Gorry, what a mess!” exclaimed Norman sud¬ 
denly rolling over. His action was followed by a 
roar of fury from the Skipper that would have done 
justice to an angry walrus. 

‘‘Up everybody!” called the Doctor as cheerily as 
he could, “and clear this stuff out.” 

It took nearly an hour to get the furs cleaned of 
the powdery snow. Even then a great deal of it 
melted and soaked both blankets and skins. As a 
howling blizzard was in progress without, there was 
no means to work except inside the cramped and 
lightless rock hut. It was barely large enough to 
hold the original four who had built it. “The bigger 
the house, the more difficult it is to heat,” had been 
the Doctor’s slogan. And now with one extra, Nor¬ 
man, and also all the skins, supplies, and so on, the 
confusion and crowding was irritating in the ex¬ 
treme. 

“Great stuff!” Rudd told Boggs in the early stages. 
It was really exciting to the boy to be cooped up in 
a rock igloo during a howling polar blizzard. 

Boggs was of a different mind. Years before he 
had outgrown any thrill from unnecessary hardship. 

204 


THE ARCTIC PALL 


“Glad you think so!” he growled, and tried to squeeze 
himself into a dry corner which had earlier been his 
bed. Instantly he withdrew and wailed, “Who put 
that puddle there ?” 

“Here you, Boggsy,” laughed Dr. Barlow, “try 
this.” The generous Doctor rolled up on his side 
in a way that made room for the bedless wretch 
despite the fact it jammed his own back against the 
painfully sharp points of rocks in the wall behind. 

All that day the storm continued, and the follow¬ 
ing night. It was not safe to venture more than a 
few feet from the hut. The wind blew with such 
violence that it was impossible for any man to keep 
his feet. The drifting snow was a wall of gray and 
swirling obscurity that blinded even the dogs who 
had let it pile up over them in a warm blanket. 

“Where are the Eskimos?” asked Rudd anxiously. 

“Burrowed into that drift around the corner,” 
said the Doctor. “They are used to this sort of busi¬ 
ness and can stow themselves away for a week or so 
without minding it.” 

“You don’t mean to say this storm may last a 
week!” 

“I certainly do. That is the reason I was so de¬ 
termined that we should have our shelter finished 
first of all. But even more than bodily shelter is the 
importance of keeping our minds off our troubles.” 

“Hanged if I see how we can do that,” was the 
205 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


dismal reply, punctuated by the drone of the gale 
outside. 

Whereupon the Doctor set about organizing a so¬ 
ciety of promotion of goodwill in the hut. Its chief 
rule was that no one should sleep during the morn¬ 
ing, and that every one should tell at least one story 
a day. “If we sleep at irregular times,” he ex¬ 
plained, “then the first thing we know we will be 
irritating one another by keeping each other awake, 
as well as getting ourselves into a nervous state 
through oversleep.” 

Captain Pike proved the most successful in the 
story-telling contests. Once he got started on a tale 
of whaling experiences he would run on for an hour 
or more. And the joy of it was that he never re¬ 
peated himself, and never described an incident with¬ 
out making it more thrilling than the last one. 

By the third day even this occupation began to 
pall. Norman and Rudd, who had been the closest 
friends, and really the liveliest of the party, began it 
with a quarrel. It seemed that Rudd slept by the 
west wall. Norman’s bed was next. As the stove 
was at his feet and a case of biscuit topped by the 
Doctor’s magnetic instruments beyond his head, 
there was no space in which to keep his sewing kit 
and other small belongings. Boggs had suggested 
using the chinks between the rocks in Rudd’s wall as 
206 


THE ARCTIC PALL 


shelves. In consequence Norman and Rudd divided 
these chinks, of which there were about a dozen. 

Everything had gone peacefully until Rudd sat up 
and said truculently, “Dr. Barlow, I’d like to come 
over there and sleep by you.” 

“Nothing doing!” exclaimed Boggs. “I got here 
first.” 

“Aw, dry up,” growled Norman, who knew what 
was coming. 

The Doctor did not speak for a moment. Then, 
“Variety is the spice of life, Rudd,” he laughed, “I 
think a little change might do us all good.” 

But Rudd was determined to have his wrongs pub¬ 
lished. “I’ve got to change,” he said, irritatedly, 
“because Norman wakes me up all the time reaching 
over and trying to get his things out of the wall. 
Last night he dropped hot pipe ashes down my neck 
just as I was dreaming I was home.” 

At this the others roared with laughter. But 
Rudd’s grouch was only magnified by the mirth he 
had caused. 

“Guess the Society of Entertainment had better 
decorate you for that remark,” laughed the Doctor. 

But, despite the efforts of the three not concerned 
in the unfortunate incident, Rudd and Norman re¬ 
fused to speak to one another all that day, and when 
Norman’s turn came to tell a story he remarked that 
he guessed he didn’t have anything to say. 

207 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Finally the Doctor saw the unhappy possibilities 
of the incident and set about a serious discussion 
of it. 

“Boys,” he said, “I want you to see things in their 
right light. I am really glad this episode has oc¬ 
curred. We are in the midst of the arctic summer. 
There is plenty of food. Except for an occasional 
blow we have plenty of occupation, and we have 
retained our excellent health.” 

“I ain’t,” interrupted Boggs. “Got rheumatiz in 
two toes right now.” 

The Doctor’s face became more grave. “When 
six months of darkness and bitter cold shut us in we 
shall all have ‘rheumatiz in our toes’ as Boggs com¬ 
plains of. Aches and pains and irritations will rack 
every nerve in our bodies. The utmost endurance 
and courage will be necessary to keep our spirits up. 
Now is the time to practice forbearance. If you 
lads are going to break off friendly relations after 
two or three days in a summer blow with the sun 
just behind the clouds, what on earth are you going 
to do when you are trapped in a two-weeks’ blizzard 
without having seen the sun for months and with 
the mercury frozen solid in its bulb?” 

“And nothing but rotten meat to eat,” put in the 
Skipper. “Why I remember in the winter of 
’eighty-five-” 

“Please don’t,” whimpered Boggs. “I’ve heard 
208 



THE ARCTIC PALL 


that there story afore from my Uncle Andrew and 
it alius turns my stomach!” 

Rudd sat suddenly up with a grin. “Guess you’re 
right, sir,” he said heartily. “Norman, here’s my 
hand on it. Let’s stick it out as friends whatever 
happens.” 

“Sure pop!” was the quick retort. And the pair 
shook hands with a grip that was a promise to stick 
close through thick and thin. 

The following morning dawned bright and clear. 
The land was transfigured. Spots of green grass 
and arctic poppies had disappeared under the snowy 
mantle that lay sparkling on every inch of rock and 
earth. The Eskimos appeared with their usual 
laughter and gayety, having slept through most of 
the storm. One of them approached Captain Pike 
with the suggestion that they have a meal with the 
white men. This request was of course granted. 
Hospitality was certainly due them after the help 
that had been given in the trip across after the 
Pole Star. 

“They complain their seal meat has all gone,” said 
the Skipper, “and want us to feed their dogs.” 

“But they must have had a ton of seal!” exclaimed 
Rudd. “What became of all that ?” 

The brown hunters protested that it was entirely 
used up. The dogs had been allowed to eat as much 
209 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


as they wished during the storm when they weren’t 
even working. 

“That’s the Eskimo for you, Pike,” commented 
the Doctor. “He will lay away caches on the beach 
when he finds himself unable to transport the meat 
to his home. But as for planning his expenditure 
so that food will last until more can be got, he never 
thinks of such a thing.” 

“Let the idots starve,” growled the Skipper. 
“Gorge themselves till they can’t stand up, and a 
week later are boiling their pants for breakfast!” 

“Don’t be too harsh with them, Pike. They are 
just children. Think of it: no schools; no law ex¬ 
cept that of necessity; no one to answer to save their 
own consciences and appetites. Is it any wonder 
they cannot imagine a life ordered with the geo¬ 
metrical accuracy of our own?” 

Argument proved to be of no avail with the na¬ 
tives. They stayed around long enough to get a 
good mugup of tea and then hitched up their teams 
sullenly for departure south. 

“Good-by,” Rudd told the old fellow who had 
been his teacher during their days together. 

The hunter grabbed Rudd’s hand, white-man 
fashion, and grinned. Then reaching into the load 
on his sledge he hauled out a coil of sealskin line 
and handed it to the boy. Such is the age-old 
210 


THE ARCTIC PALL 

practice of man; the gift will speak when language 
fails. 

Rudd silently watched the column of sledges crawl 
up the hill. Both Captain Pike and Dr. Barlow 
seemed not to mind the loss of the native visitors. 
Boggs and Norman declared they were glad to be 
rid of the “sponges” as they call them. 

“Don’t worry,” said the Doctor, “they will get 
over this and be back soon as their stomachs are 
good and full again.” 

“But I hate to lose the chance to learn all the 
things they do,” complained Rudd. “The old fel¬ 
low, ‘Metok,’ I think his name was, might have 
showed me how to build a snow igloo if he had 
waited long enough to let the snow get in good 
shape.” 

“Didn’t you learn a good deal as it was ?” 

“Yes, I did. I can build a rabbit snare of rocks 
now; and trap foxes by the talus slope; and cut 
sealskin into line; and fix my boots so they won’t 
leak.” 

“Yes, and I bet you are twice as safe in this 
country now that you have some of the Eskimo’s 
tricks up your sleeve. Wait till later and we can 
get a dog team for you. That is the real sport of 
the north.” 

Rudd’s face fell. Instead of exulting in the pos¬ 
sibility of winning that coveted skill which every 
211 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


man desires who gets a taste of the fascinating 
north, he gave every sign of discouragemnet at the 
prospect. 

“Heavens, lad!” exclaimed Dr. Barlow, “you're 
not homesick, are you ?” 

“No, it isn't that,” was the slow reply. 

“Well what?” 

“I can scarcely explain it, sir, but somehow I 
have a queer feeling inside me that we shall never 
see those Eskimos again.” 

For a moment the Doctor started to laugh and 
then stopped. There was something in the serious¬ 
ness of Rudd's speech that convinced him that the 
boy’s premonition was true. 

And it was. 


CHAPTER XXII 
EXCITEMENT 


T HE day the Eskimos left a council of war 
was held over the use of the Pole Star. 
Two trips to the cache had been made and 
there were now at the hut sufficient provisions to last 
through the better part of the winter. 

“The danger is,” observed the Doctor, “that if 
half our supplies are here and half fifty miles away 
we can never be sure that the other lot is safe. Bears 
may come again and do more damage. Ice may be 
driven upon the beach and carry some of the cases 
away. An unusual thaw may pop up in August 
and swamp it. A dozen accidents might make it 
necessary that we have those supplies.” 

The Skipper shook his head. “I don’t care,” he 
protested, “we have got to conserve fuel both for 
cooking and for the Pole Star to make it possible for 
us to get out in the next summer season.” 

Norman braught up the point that even if the 
launch got out under sail she ought to have engine 
power available in case the ice caught her. “Besides,” 
he argued, “if we have to make a run for it nothing 
213 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


would mean more than plenty of cooking fuel so that 
we might have hot food at all times.” 

A compromise was finally reached by following a 
suggestion coming from Boggs. He believed that it 
would be possible to sail around and back and secure 
more walrus at the same time. “There ain’t no better 
way to be sure of a square meal than stackin’ up 
some of them hippopotamuses!” was the way he put 
it. 

“Very well, then,” assented the Doctor. “The two 
boys and Boggs can go while Pike and I go forward 
with getting the camp shipshape.” 

“Humph!” growled the Skipper. “I’ve had about 
enough of this camp business for a while. Want 
to have a look around. Besides,” he scowled at 
Norman, “this young fellow’s story gives me a hunch 
the ship isn’t out of her hole yet.” 

“Don’t see why, sir,” blurted Norman, feeling the 
Captain was in some way blaming him. “She’s 
under way and bound south—I saw her!” 

“Oh, all right—all right! But just the same I 
want to have a look around there myself; so I’m 
going.” 

“Guess I’ll go, too,” laughed the Doctor. “I don’t 
want to miss anything.” 

So when the Pole Star set forth with her crazy 
sail she held the entire party. And it was a gay 
party, too. All had made up their minds to make the 
214 


EXCITEMENT 


best of what Fate had thrust upon them. And, while 
the winter would surely be a tough experience, there 
was no basic reason why they shouldn’t all live to tell 
the tale. 

Contrary winds made the trip around longer than 
was anticipated. Also walrus were killed at two 
points. Landing the meat and caching it took the 
better part of three days. Thus nearly a week had 
elapsed before Erik Harbor was reached. 

“Turn to, boys,” said the Doctor as they landed 
on the familiar beach, “and let’s get this stuff aboard. 
Every day we spend here we risk trouble in getting 
back. Ice conditions change overnight. I don’t 
believe the Skipper wants to make the journey over¬ 
land.” 

“That may be,” retorted the Skipper, “but I’m 
going to have a little walk of my own right this 
minute.” Whereupon he turned and started up the 
hill from which the whole gulf was visible. 

“Poor old scout!” exclaimed the Doctor, when the 
Skipper had got out of earshot. “He feels the loss 
of his ship a good deal more than he shows.” 

“Should think he would!” exclaimed Norman, 
“after a lot of crooks stole it right out from under 
his very nose.” 

The Doctor failed to agree. “No, Norman, I can’t 
bring myself to feel the same. Mr. Menon was per¬ 
sonally sponsored by a member of the firm that owns 

215 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


the ship. And, so I understand, the Captain got 
particular instructions from young Dinger, a junior 
partner, to give Mr. Menon all the authority pos¬ 
sible.” 

“Well, he got it!” burst Rudd, unable to contain 
his feelings when the subject got around to the First 
Officer. 

Boggs' fingers were twitching and his mouth work¬ 
ing for some fitting expression of the same emotion 
when a faint halloa floated down from above the 
talkers. 

“Skipper's trying to hail us,” said Dr. Barlow. 
“See if you can get him.” 

Again came the long throaty cry of the old seaman. 

“He's p’inting, sir,” said Boggs. 

“At what?” Rudd said, and started on a run 
toward the nearest slope. His heart beat faster and 
he felt a strange choking sensation in his throat. 
Yet, strange to say, he could not for the world have 
explained why. He had given up hope of seeing the 
ship again. He somehow knew positively that die 
Eskimos wouldn’t come back. There was no other 
source of supplies that might be expected. And, 
finally, there could not possibly be any hope of a 
relief ship till next year, for the good and simple 
reason that friends at home would not suspect any¬ 
thing was wrong until Mr. Menon and his crew 
arrived late in the summer—if then. 

216 


EXCITEMENT 


From the slope he could make out only the usual 
expanse of sea and ice. Distant shores of Baffin 
Land formed a brownish gray haze on the horizon. 
Only the shrill cries of a few sea birds and a distant 
dark patch on a floe where walrus slept indicated that 
the vast and terrible isolation contained any life 
besides the little group of deserted men on the beach. 

“He thinks he can see something out there,” called 
Norman. “How about it?” 

Rudd gave another long look and yelled back, “A 
herd of walrus, that’s all.” 

“Fiddle!” said the Doctor. “The old fellow has 
gone bug-house over hunting. Let’s get busy now, 
and make some progress.” 

No more attention was paid to the Skipper until 
he dragged himself into camp some time later, pretty 
well done up by the climb. He was well along in 
years for the heavy strain of dragging through snow 
and over rocky moraines left by past glaciers. 

“Woof!” he panted, and seated himself on a case 
of pemmican. “Stiff climb that—but worth it.” 

“Yes,” said the Doctor, rolling a ten-gallon tin of 
fuel to his shoulder. “We saw the walrus, too.” 

“Is that all you saw?” The Skipper took on a 
queer expression that caused the Doctor to pause. 

“Did you see more, Pike?” 

“Well—hum—well, yes,” He took out his pipe 
and began to fill it with maddening slowness. 

217 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“What? Out with it!” 

By this time all had gathered about the Skipper as 
if realizing that some momentous secret was about 
to be divulged. Boggs’ mouth hung open and his 
eyes popped almost out of his head. 

“It wasn’t-?” blurted the fireman. Somehow 

he couldn’t articulate the word, whatever it was. 

“Fine view from up there,” announced the Skipper. 

The Doctor grabbed him by his shoulder. “Stop 
it, Pike. What was it, anyway?” 

“Only the Erik ” 

“Only the Erik!” cried the four listeners in chorus. 

The next instant Rudd and Norman were racing 
for the hill. Nothing would do but they must 
satisfy themselves that the ship was really in sight. 
And deep down in the hearts of each was a throbbing 
joy at the prospect of getting home after all without 
having to spend the winter north. 

“It is!” shouted Rudd after a squint through his 
one-eyed binoculars. “I can see her masts and bridge 
and smokestack. She’s over there behind that big 
berg.” 

“Righto!” exclaimed the incredulous Norman. 
Then his gladness disappeared swiftly as it had come. 
“But what difference does it make while those blink¬ 
ing crooks are on board her?” 

The others had already reached this state of mind 
by the time the two returned to camp. Dr. Barlow 
218 


EXCITEMENT 


counseled delaying long enough to find out just what 
the ship seemed to be doing. 

“If she’s on her way, we can’t catch her, pos¬ 
sibly. And if she’s back for us, she’ll come right 
here.” 

“It ain’t right to wait!” lamented Boggs. “I want 
to get back for that ’baccy I left in my bunk. Some 
sea cook’s probably got it already l” 

The Doctor comforted the poor fellow by pointing 
out that if Mr. Menon did not want them aboard he 
would have no difficulty in keeping the motor boat 
at bay. 

“Indeed, our arrival would embarrass him into 
almost any desperate course to get rid of us.” 

“Right, Barlow,” agreed the Skipper. “If they’ve 
had nerve enough to mutiny and steal the ship, 
they ain’t going to stop at blowing the Pole Star out 
of the water if we try to come aboard when they 
don’t want us. We would be about as popular as a 
bunch o’ wasps in prayer meeting.” 

Norman’s idea was that ice conditions might have 
forced them back. 

“I remember,” he said, “that the Chief was appar¬ 
ently in some doubt whether they could get through 
Fury and Hecla Straits or not.” 

“Was she heading north?” asked the Doctor. 

The Skipper scratched his head. “Looked more 
as if she were drifting,” said he. 

219 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“Heading nearly this way when I saw her,” put 
in Rudd, “and the funny part of it was that there 
didn’t seem to be much ice around her. I bet they’re 
coming over here to take back some of the pro¬ 
visions.” 

“Indian givers!” ejaculated Boggs. 

“Then we’d better hide,” said Rudd. 

The Doctor held up his hand. “Let’s don’t go off 
half-cocked, men. The ship is far enough away to 
give us plenty of time to act. If she is coming over 
here, we might betake ourselves to the hills. But 
if the crowd aboard are still unfriendly, they cer¬ 
tainly would seize the Pole Star, besides much of the 
cache. If she is bound north, we can wait and be 
sure and then endeavor to join her. She would 
undoubtedly stop for fresh water somewhere up the 
coast.” 

“How about their outnumbering us?” said Nor 
man. 

“I was coming to that. Since they do outnumber 
us so greatly, we can only hope to combat them 
through strategy rather than through physical 
strength. If they land here and find us in a cheerful 
humor and not worried about the Erik's absence, I 
wouldn’t be surprised to see Mr. Menon back-walk 
his plan altogether and be willing to take us back 
aboard as if nothing had happened. Further, if he 
should make a show of trying to work his will on 
220 


EXCITEMENT 


us, I believe a simple but unyielding refusal to coun¬ 
tenance any such absurd proposition would carry 
conviction to the men. They would swing to Captain 
Pike in a minute if they thought he was being 
wronged. And I don’t believe money could swerve 
them if he were present.” 

“Thank you, Barlow,” said the Skipper in gruff 
appreciation. “I believe you are correct in your 
surmise.” 

Thus, instead of immediate action to overtake the 
Erik or flee from her captors, a quiet supper of 
walrus, biscuit, and tea was prepared. While the 
meat was boiling, Norman and Rudd ferried out 
enough fuel to fill the Pole Star's tanks. It would 
never do to start the chase and then be forced to 
abandon it at a critical point. 

“Some exciting—what?” exclaimed Rudd. 

“Sure is,” agreed Norman. “I feel as if I were 
mixed up in some kind of pirate tale where the 
enemy was always running off with my ship and 
money, and I was pulling myself out of holes by my 
boot-straps.” 

Conversation lagged at the meal. No one could 
keep his eye off the point in the ice-dotted horizon 
where the Erik lay. Sometimes her masts were 
faintly visible. More often though she floated out 
of sight behind some massive iceberg. 

“How are we going to tell when to act?” asked 
221 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Rudd, growing impatient with the long wait. “I 
don’t believe she’s under way at all. Seems just to 
be fooling around going nowhere.” 

“Hanged if I don’t believe you’re right,” agreed 
the Doctor. “If she doesn’t show some signs of 
movement pretty soon, I think we might as well 
take a run out to her.” 

“Good idea to wait till late,” suggested Norman. 
“We might be able to sneak up on them and catch 
them by surprise.” 

“I doubt it,” Dr. Barlow said. “The men could 
be awakened and be manning the rail long before we 
could carry out any sort of attack. Remember you 
are in the arctic, and even at midnight would have 
to approach in broad daylight.” 

Through the long hours of the evening while the 
sun sank lower and lower the anxious little party 
watched the ship. There was something pathetic in 
the sight of five strong men abandoned in such a 
desert as this, their ship in plain view, yet unable to 
hasten aboard her for the welcome that should have 
been waiting. By eleven o’clock the sun was but 
ten or fifteen degrees above the northern horizon. 
A soft pinkish glow tinted the hilltops and the ice. 
The wind had dropped. Silence of summer ruled 
the peaceful scene. 

Suddenly the Doctor leaped from the biscuit tin 
on which he had been squirming for half an hour. 

222 


EXCITEMENT 


“I can’t stand this business any longer! Let’s take 
a chance and go.” 

His suggestion received unanimous approval. 
Five minutes later the wanderers were aboard the 
Pole Star puffing her way briskly in the direction of 
the Erik. 


CHAPTER XXIII 
THE DERELICT 

OURSE was set not for the Erik, but for 



a line of icebergs to the northward. 

“Might as well play safe,” said the Doc¬ 


tor. “If we see them first and gather some idea what 
they are about it will be a decided tactical advantage.” 

Norman added that he believed there was a better 
chance than the Doctor thought to overcome the 
mutinous crew aboard the ship. 

“I happen to know,” he said, “that Mr. Menon is 
being much easier on them than Captain Pike ever 


was. 


“Ha, popularity game!” ejaculated the Skipper. 

“Exactly, sir. He believes that by giving them 
extra privileges and more leeway aboard ship he can 
gain their backing that much more solidly.” 

“In what particular way is he easier?” asked 
Rudd. 

“Well, instead of having several people on watch 
at a time, he lets all hands sleep in except a wheelman. 
Even the lookout is not present in his barrel except 
when there is ice close to the ship. And the man at the 
wheel is selected by lot. That, according to Mr. 


224 


THE DERELICT 

Menon’s way of thinking, makes it fair for every 
man.” 

“May be fair,” growled the Skipper, “but it ain’t 
seamanlike, and I bet my wad it gets him into trouble 
afore he’s gone very far!” 

“Yes,” said the Doctor, “and loyalty won by 
such means is not true loyalty. It’s like the treach¬ 
erous affection of a wild animal that will fawn upon 
his trainer so long as a sop of meat is thrown him, 
but will turn with bared fangs the moment the 
meat fails or his mood changes.” 

“Anyway,” went on Norman, who was not so 
much interested in the philosophical side of the 
question, “I figure that there will be only one man 
on watch and he is very likely to be half asleep with 
the state of discipline that exists aboard. We prob¬ 
ably can sail up without being seen or heard. If 
then we can board and get the foc’sle hatch dogged 
down before any one comes to life, we shall have 
the ship at our mercy.” 

“How ’bout them as lives aft?” asked Boggs, anx¬ 
iously. He was a little squeamish at the idea of 
these warlike plans. 

“Easy enough. There’s only the Chief and Mr. 
Menon. Reggie Caverly bunks there but he cer¬ 
tainly doesn’t count.” 

“Norman’s right,” put in the Doctor. “If we 
can imprison those forward, our five guns will cer- 
225 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


tainly cover the cabin mess and the man on watch.” 

Thus it was agreed upon to creep up astern of the 
ship where the man at the wheel would least likely 
be looking and steal aboard somewhere near the 
bow. The moment the hatch leading to the crew’s 
quarters was locked the attack would be led aft as 
swiftly as possible. Once the Skipper was back in 
power there was no great reason to believe the 
ship’s company could not be convinced of the error 
of their ways. Besides, the law would uphold any 
disciplinary measures necessary to put the proper 
commanding officer in his place. 

“You’ve forgot the engine room,” said Boggs. 

“Oh, no,” came back Norman. “You could lead 
an army aboard without disturbing any one down 
there. The condenser is in such rotten shape it 
drowns out any noise on deck. Besides, I don’t 
think any of the black gang have fallen for Mr. 
Menon. He called them cowards, and they won’t 
forget it soon.” 

Conditions grew more favorable as the Pole Star 
reached the vicinity of the Erik. The vessel was 
headed north and seemed to have stopped for some 
reason. To the southward of her lay strung an 
irregular column of bergs, each many times larger 
than the little craft. About three miles down this 
column the Pole Star swung in and headed up 
towards the ship. As there was just enough breeze 
226 


THE DERELICT 


to give her steerageway, she bore down upon the 
Erik at a speed of not over three knots. This put 
the time of attack at approximately two A. m. 

“Exactly right,” said Dr. Barlow. “That will 
give the fellow on mid-watch a chance to get good 
and drowsy, and all below will just be getting their 
second wind in their bunks.” 

“They clean fires about one-thirty,” said Boggs. 

“Haven’t cleaned fires since I sighted her,” 
averred the Skipper. “Not a flicker of smoke has 
come up her pipe.” 

“Do you think they could have let the fires die 
out?” asked Rudd. 

Norman shook his head. “Doubt it. Even Mr. 
Menon realized it wouldn’t be safe while there’s ice 
within fifty miles to let steam drop. If he got 
nipped, there’d be no way to run without the engines. 
Besides, as I told you, the men below are not behind 
the First Officer. They are looking after their boil¬ 
ers whether he wants to be popular or not.” 

The Doctor here stopped the conversation for a 
word of caution. “Remember, men,” said he, “that 
we’ve got to keep our heads. Don’t shoot unless it’s 
absolutely necessary. Have your magazines loaded ; 
and keep a cartridge in the chamber at all times. 
Be ready to act at a moment’s notice. But use 
judgment, whatever you do.” 

“Right!” agreed the Skipper, enthusiastically. 

227 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“The first thing we know that squad of crooks will 
swear we attacked them without provocation, and 
we’ll be in jail after all. Great sea-lawyer that fellow 
Menon is; we’ve got to watch him.” 

Rudd took his rifle from its case with mixed feel¬ 
ings. He had enjoyed the thrill of the walrus hunt, 
and he had experienced a certain stimulation at the 
prospect of spending a winter in the arctic regions 
under such circumstances as the party faced. But 
to prepare for a hand-to-hand encounter with other 
men was a little too much out of romance to be fun. 
Even when he had fired at Reggie he knew that he 
would only wound him if possible. Now he might 
have to shoot to kill or be killed himself. 

About half a mile from the ship the Pole Star 
was moored to the outer edge of a low berg in order 
that a reconnaissance might be made of ice condi¬ 
tions ahead. It was so difficult to maneuver the 
launch with her small sail and the light wind, that 
it would be disastrous to get too close to the Erik 
and discover that no more cover lay ahead. 

Norman and Rudd crawled to the summit of the 
ice knob and studied the ship and the ice that lay 
between them and her. 

“Plenty of growlers,” was Norman’s estimate. 

“Sure is,” said Rudd. “We won’t have the 
slightest trouble keeping out of sight.” 

They then scrutinized the vessel herself. Dr. 

228 


THE DERELICT 


Bartow had pointed out the necessity of this, despite 
Norman’s assurance that no trouble would be met 
from men on deck. 

“Certainly looks deserted, don’t she?” Rudd’s 
keen eyes swept over every visible inch of deck, 
rigging* an d bulwarks. 

“Just what I told you,” retorted Norman. “Can 
you see the man at the wheel?” 

“I think I can. No—it’s a sort of boxlike thing 
they’ve rigged by the wheel.” 

“Aha—a shelter for the poor fellow on watch. 
More popularity stuff. Built him a little calaboose 
to snooze in while he’s got the safety of the ship in 
his hands. Fine seagoing trick—what!” Norman’s 
tones spoke the contempt that his words could not 
equal. 

Captain Pike could scarcely believe them when 
they described the watch box that appeared to have 
been built on the bridge for the comfort of the 
helmsman and had to go up and take a look for 
himself. 

He returned shaking his head. “The boys are 
right, Barlow. I can’t see the helmsman at all. 
And the wheel is out of sight behind this windbreak 
or whatever it is they’ve stuck up there.” 

“So much the better, Pike. Now all we have to 
do is to ease in close enough to the side with our 
mast unstepped and he will never even see us go by.” 

229 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


As the motor boat was soon within a quarter of a 
mile of the Erik all talking was done in undertones. 
Greatest care was taken not to bump any gun on the 
deck or make any other unnecessary noise that might 
warn the unsuspecting mutineers of the party’s 
approach. 

“Be sure your lines are clear,” commanded the 
Doctor in a stage whisper. 

With scarcely a ripple the little Pole Star crept 
slowly closer and closer. The night was still and 
clear. Northeast swung the low and flaming orb 
of the midnight sun. Occasionally there came a 
distant rumble of an overturning berg, or the 
wrenching grind of heavy pans brought together 
by the tide. 

The ship seemed absolutely without life. She 
was not under way as those aboard the launch had 
suspected for some time, but lay dead in the water. 
The helmsman evidently had found his watch box to 
his liking, for, in the entire time since the look 
from the berg, no one had seen him emerge for a 
look around. Even had he done so, it was unlikely 
he could have spotted the Pole Star. She was white 
and her passengers stood like statues about her deck. 
To an uninterested person she would easily have 
passed for a growler of dirty ice. 

A hundred yards from the ship Dr. Barlow sig¬ 
naled to unstep the mast. Immediately the shrouds 
230 


THE DERELICT 


were cast loose, and Norman, Rudd, and Boggs 
lifted the light spar from its step. So skillful was 
their work that not so much as a tap was audible 
when it landed on deck and was secured with a light 
lashing. Norman at once took up the homemade 
scull of sealskin and harpoon shaft and went aft to 
aid the boat in case she began to drift clear of the 
ship. Luck, however, proved to be on her side. 
She kept her way long enough to reach the Erik's 
quarter. Rudd stood in the bow with a boathook 
and fender and managed to keep her off, at the same 
time drawing her in exactly parallel to the vessel’s 
side. So far there was no sound or sign of life on 
the Erik's deck. On the launch all stood ready to 
board, with guns loaded and cocked, the moment any 
alarm went up. At the same time, in accordance 
with Dr. Barlow’s instructions, each was equally 
ready to exhibit the utmost friendliness if that should 
prove to be the spirit in which they were received. 

The first difficulty came just abaft the bridge. 
Here the port whaleboat had been swung. Its davits 
were now trained outboard and the boat was missing. 

“Probably explains why she’s not under way,” 
thought Dr. Barlow. “They’ve had the sense to 
go after walrus while the chance is here. First sign 
of sanity that Menon has shown.” 

The situation was, however, full of peril for the 
party’s plan to get aboard undiscovered. The 
231 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


whaleboat’s falls hung down, nearly dipping their 
blocks in the water. In consequence it would have 
been practically impossible to get the launch past 
without either banging the blocks against her side, 
or by moving them causing a fatal squeaking in the 
tackle above. Either accident would immediately 
disclose the boat’s presence to the man at the wheel, 
unless he were sleeping soundly—which was unlikely 
even under the conditions Norman had described. 

For a few minutes things looked bad. The launch 
was brought to a stop and all looked to the Doctor 
for advice. None dared even whisper in the tensity 
of the moment. With his usual resourcefulness he 
had a solution at hand. Drawing his jackknife 
from his pocket he passed it forward and signed 
Rudd to cut the blocks from their falls. A minute 
later both blocks lay on deck and the Pole Star crept 
silently forward, the fall ends dragging harmlessly 
over her deck. 

Near the waist of the ship was another touchy 
point. The Erik was cut so low here that all had to 
lie flat on the Pole Star's deck to avoid being seen. 
Rudd managed to reach out with his boathook and 
snag the mooring staples in time to pull her ahead. 
Once he missed his hold and for a desperate instant 
it looked as if the boat would drift clear and be dis¬ 
covered after all. But with acrobatic agility, the 
lad recovered his hold, and three minutes later the 
232 


THE DERELICT 


launch lay safely under the shadow of the forward 
deck house, well out of sight of any one on the 
bridge. 

Dr. Barlow raised his hand as a signal for Nor¬ 
man to go over the rail. He was detailed to close 
the forecastle hatch. Rudd followed immediately 
with his own and Norman’s rifle. Then came the 
Doctor and Captain Pike. Boggs stayed on the 
launch long enough to secure her well in case the 
impending fight should occupy a longer time than 
was anticipated. 

Rudd and the two older men stayed in the lee 
of the deck house until Norman returned with word 
that he had the hatch well secured. “Not a grunt 
out of them!” he whispered. 

“Did you see the bridge?” asked the Doctor, with 
his lips to Norman’s ear. 

“No—couldn’t quite from where I stood. I was 
afraid to take too long.” 

“Are we ready?” asked the Doctor, looking over 
his little boarding party. He counted the gripped 
rifles and set faces. Rudd’s particularly was molded 
into an expression of determination that gave the 
leader a little thrill of satisfaction. “Let’s go then,” 
he commanded in a low voice. 

Rudd and Norman crept around to starboard, the 
Skipper and Dr. Barlow tiptoed along the port pas¬ 
sageway. Rudd stepped out almost at the same 
233 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


instant that the Doctor did. His ears strained to 
catch the “Hands up!” he knew the Doctor would 
give to the helmsman. 

No such word came. The bridge was empty. 
What had looked like a watch box on the bridge 
was now made out to be only a pile of packing cases. 

Swiftly the four boarders made their way aft. 
Dr. Barlow leading, they descended to the cabin. 
Like the bridge, it too was devoid of any human 
being. 

“Quick, go forward,” exclaimed the Skipper. 
“They may have seen us and are lying in ambush 
waiting to see what we are up to.” 

But at that instant Boggs nearly fell into the 
cabin with word that he had peered into the crew 
space through a port in the bow and discovered that 
every bunk was empty. 

“Try the engine room,” ordered the Doctor. 

Rudd and Norman dashed out and clambered 
down the ladder. They took their rifles with them, 
too. It was too uncanny to believe—that the whole 
ship could be deserted and not a sign to indicate 
why. 

The engine room and fireroom were also empty. 

“Search the ship!” directed the Skipper. 

The command was carried out to the letter. 
Rudd’s report was characteristic of the others’. He 
said: “Captain, I can’t find the trace of a man. 

234 


THE DERELICT 


And yet from the looks of the galley, the quarters, 
the decks, your entire crew might have left ten 
minutes ago. Indeed I would put it at less than ten 
minutes except that fires in the galleys and boilers 
are out, and both are cold. This ship was deserted 
not later than yesterday.” 

“Well, now wouldn’t that frazzle your ratlines!” 
said the Skipper. 

Boggs sat down on an after bitt and buried his 
face in his hands. 


CHAPTER XXIV 


A DESPERATE CHANCE 

HE Erik had been deserted. There was no 
doubt about that. The shock of it seemed 



to numb the mental faculties of those who 
had boarded her. They had been so keyed up to 
some sort of resistance, probably real battle, that the 
funereal silence of the vessel gave them a feeling of 
unreality, as if this were all a bad dream from which 
they might soon awaken. 

Dr. Barlow was the first to regain his balance and 
suggest action. “There are two tasks we have imme¬ 
diately before us,” said he. “First, we have got to 
ascertain the circumstances under which the ship was 
deserted, as well as the causes therefor. Second, and 
tremendously important, we must take steps to in¬ 
sure her safety.” 

“But you can't man a ship this size with five 
hands,” demurred the Skipper. 

Dr. Barlow, realizing the old fellow's depressed 
state of mind, did not attempt to dispute the point 
with him. It was Norman who pointed out the 
possibilities. 


236 


A DESPERATE CHANCE 


“We can certainly put sail on her,” said he. “If 
we can work across to Erik Harbor, she would then 
be safe for the winter.” 

“She’s got a list—didn’t you notice it?” argued 
the Skipper, apparently determined to have the catas¬ 
trophe as dreadful as possible. 

“That’s the reason,” said the Doctor, “that I 
want every one to take a part of the ship and ex¬ 
amine it at once. We can then determine what our 
course had best be.” 

Rudd and Norman took the crew space. Boggs 
took the hold. The Skipper and Dr. Barlow stayed 
in the cabin to study the log and other papers. For 
an hour the business of inspection and examination 
went on. A squad of Pinkerton detectives could 
not have done a better job. And despite the fact 
that no one had so far had any sleep that night, 
the old Erik had probably not suffered such a search¬ 
ing scrutiny since her day of acceptance. As far 
as sleep was concerned, any rest was out of the 
question. From the Skipper to Boggs, every one’s 
curiosity about the extraordinary mystery was too 
keen not to satisfy it this very night if possible. 

The party gathered in the cabin to report. 

“First,” began the Doctor, “I will say that Pike 
and I have gone over what papers we find and can 
locate no evidence that anything was wrong with the 
ship. A very careful entry was made in the book 
237 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


of temperatures, which was kept in the Captain’s 
cabin, to the effect that weather was fair and pleasant 
two days ago. Since that time there has been no 
entry. The log is missing. Other papers of iden¬ 
tification are practically intact. Summing up this 
evidence, Pike and I agree that while the ship was 
deserted in haste, all hands left together led by 
whomsoever was in command. Under no other con¬ 
ditions would the log have been taken and other 
papers left behind.” 

“Probably didn’t have sense enough to take the 
others,” growled the Skipper. 

The Doctor turned to Rudd. “How about the 
living quarters?” 

Rudd held outspread his open empty hands. 
“Nothing, sir. Not a vestige of proof one way or 
the other. Blankets were missing from some of the 
bunks; but mattresses were in place and ditty bags 
intact. I should think the men would at least have 
taken their clothing with them.” 

“Yes,” agreed Norman. “Even in shipwreck a 
sailorman wants to grab his bag and kit. Looks to 
me as if these fellows must have been doped and 
dumped overboard, instead of leaving willingly.” 

“How about the state of neatness?” questioned 
the Doctor. 

“Perfect,” Rudd continued. “It must have been 
around ten a. m. when they left. The place was 
238 


A DESPERATE CHANCE 


tidied up and the noon meal was being cooked. 
Hot bread was in the oven, though burned to a 
crisp now. A pot of seapie is still on the back of 
the stove ready to eat. Mess gear is neatly stowed 
and none missing. The Mate’s slop chest he used 
to keep under one of the bunks is unlocked, but 
every article is piled tidily and a list of contents is 
lying on top. Several pipe racks still hold their 
pipes.” 

“That’s fine!” exclaimed Boggs; “Broke me pipe 
yesterday.” 

The Doctor turned a stern eye on the fireman. 
“No looting whatever we do. If it becomes neces¬ 
sary to use what is left, we shall do it in an orderly 
fashion after making a proper inventory.” 

Norman verified what Rudd had said and added 
some of the details about conditions on deck. “Gear 
is all in the best of shape,” said he. “Lines are coiled 
down and tackle rigged for sea.” 

“Beastly dirty, I’d say,” interjected the Skipper. 

“Yes, sir, it is, compared to the spic and span 
way you used to keep her. Don’t take long for a 
ship’s decks to get run down after discipline eases 
off.” 

“Did you have a look at that bowsprit forward?” 

“Yes, sir. Jury stays had been rove off and head- 
sails can now be spread as before. Just as Rudd 
239 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


says, I see absolutely no reason for the ship ever 
having been abandoned.” 

Boggs’ turn came next. His testimony was so 
mixed up with condemnation of the whole affair 
that it was with difficulty that the others were able 
to get at the meat of his inspection. However, his 
story was essentially the same as that of the two 
boys: everything shipshape and no visible key to the 
riddle. Boiler fires had died out of their own accord, 
but the boilers themselves were quite undamaged. 
The engine was ready for use the minute steam could 
be got on it. Coal was out on the fireroom floor and 
a shovel lay at the furnace door as if it had been 
dropped this same night. 

“I tell you,” Dr. Barlow solemnly announced, 
“this is just another of those great mysteries of the 
sea. Many a ship has been found just as the Erik 
—utterly abandoned and absolutely without reason 
to explain, even meals spread upon the table. I can¬ 
not be sure that we shall not fathom the Erik's 
secret; but I should not be surprised to have that 
the case.” 

The Skipper banged his fist upon the table and 
rose bristling with anger. “I don’t follow you, 
Barlow,” he roared, “this is no wild yarn brought 
in by a drunken sailor. This is fact—my ship! 
I know by my own eyes she has been basely stolen 
and in cowardice deserted. I’m going to find out 
240 


A DESPERATE CHANCE 


why if it takes me the rest of my life. And I’m 
going to see those—those”—the old fellow nearly 
choked in his effort to find a proper epithet—“those 
polecats he finally blurted, “rot in jail before 
I’m done!” He sat down panting with emotion. 

“Your sentiments are just, Captain,” went on 
the Doctor quietly. “But we shall make greatest 
progress toward the vengeance you so resolutely de¬ 
sire by applying cool reason to the present situation. 
We must act definitely and at once.” 

“What would you suggest, sir?” asked Rudd, 
anxious to put an end to the discussion which he 
felt was none too fruitful. 

“Getting her into Erik Harbor at once,” was 
the prompt reply. 

“But the wind is against us,” said Norman. 

“Quite right. But you must remember that the 
launch has a powerful engine. In St. Johns she was 
used to shift anchorages and towed the Erik half 
across the harbor.” 

“Is there fuel enough left?” asked Rudd. 

“Of course. We had about ten thousand gallons 
in the forepeak hold when we started.” 

Here the Skipper came in with, “Did you notice 
those cases piled on the bridge we thought were a 
shelter for the helmsman? They were cases of fuel. 
And I’m a sea cook if they haven’t been emptied.” 

“The heck you say!” ejaculated Rudd, and dashed 
241 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


up the ladder. On the bridge he seized a case from 
the pile. When full it weighed over seventy pounds. 

“It’s true!” groaned Rudd. The box slipped into 
his arms as if it were full of feathers. He tried the 
others. All were empty. At word of this serious 
find, search was at once made of the hold in which 
the rest of the fuel had been stowed. Every case 
had disappeared! 

“I see it all now!” exclaimed Norman. “When 
they found I had taken the Pole Star, Mr. Menon 
didn’t want to risk my coming back and getting filled 
up with fuel.” 

“Also,” said the Doctor, “it proves even more 
conclusively that his action was premeditated.” 

Just then Boggs came in with the cheering news 
that the wind had shifted and sail might be used to 
work the ship west into her harbor. 

“Got to be quick then,” advised the Skipper. “This 
wind means a change of weather.” 

All immediately turned to getting canvas on the 
Erik. As there was no steam on the donkey engine 
sails had to be hoisted by hand. This proved a heavy 
and tedious task. It was after seven before the 
entire set were in place and the ship making way. 
However, as the breeze had freshened, she went up 
to over five knots and soon opened the two low points 
that marked the gateway to her refuge. Captain 
Pike took the wheel when she approached the anchor- 
242 


A DESPERATE CHANCE 


age and hove her to with the skill of a true seaman. 
The other four, standing by halyards, let them go 
with a run. Rapidly the chunky little hull lost head¬ 
way and Norman let go the anchor in five fathoms 
with the ship almost dead in the water. 

“Who says five men can’t handle her?” shouted 
the Doctor. 

“Can make a windjammer out of her,” retorted 
the Skipper, “yes. But them valves and pistons below 
is meant to kick the old girl into speed. And we 
can’t so much as make steam on her with the handful 
we are.” 

“Anyway, we’ve got a place to live that ain’t a 
rabbit hutch!” was Boggs’ heartfelt comment. 

Rudd and Norman fully agreed, but felt it better 
not to insult the Doctor’s stone house which had 
stood them in very good stead. 

The first thing every one did after the ship had 
been well secured was to turn in and make up for 
lost sleep. In the past seventy-two hours the party 
had had scarcely four hours’ sleep apiece. And the 
past thirty-six had been so full of hard work and 
anxiety that even the rugged Skipper, used as he 
was to sleepless nights and days at sea, felt the strain 
and disappeared into his cabin as soon as possible. 

Boggs happily appointed himself cook and had 
steaming coffee and beans ready early next morning. 

243 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“Gosh!” exclaimed Rudd, “I never realized how 
heavenly real food could taste.” 

“Another advantage of the arctic,” smiled the 
Doctor. 

After his fourth cup of black coffee the Skipper 
began to loosen up with plans for the winter. He 
commenced by arousing the party's curiosity when 
he said: “There’s a little secret I’ve kept from you, 
Barlow. Something nice, too. I’d keep it till Christ¬ 
mas, but we may need it before then.” 

“Out with it, Pike,” laughed the other. “We can 
have it for a birthday present.” 

But the Skipper wanted a few preliminaries. “It 
has to do with our wintering here. And I want to 
be sure we start right. I suppose you’re agreed this 
is the best place for the ship?” 

“I do,” nodded the Doctor. “It would be too 
great a risk to attempt to work her out by sail so 
late in the season. And I’m afraid we couldn’t 
manage her engines.” 

“Then,” the Skipper continued, “I say we move 
entirely into the cabin. We can rig the galley stove 
by the hatch yonder and use it for heating as well 
as cooking. The forward part of the ship can be 
locked up. With snow blocks we can bank up the 
outer walls aft here and be snug and comfortable as 
long as we want.” 

244 


A DESPERATE CHANCE 


“Great!” burst from Rudd involuntarily. “And 
there’ll be plenty to eat, too.” 

The Skipper winked at Dr. Barlow. “Strange 
how these lads can’t get their minds off their stom¬ 
achs, isn’t it?” 

But Dr. Barlow let the humor pass unnoticed. 
His face had settled into a study that brought out 
every line and wrinkle. For several minutes he sat 
in deep thought without speaking. The change 
from his usual cheery mien was so marked that all 
fell into silence with him, wondering what problem 
his unerring foresight had discovered for them. 
Finally he looked up. 

“I hate to throw cold water on these plans,” said 
he; “But if I were able I’d leave the Erik at once 
for good and all.” 

“What!” Boggs nearly screamed. The prospect 
of losing his comfortable bunk and daily beans 
horrified him. 

“Yes,” the Doctor went on, “I believe at the bot¬ 
tom of my heart that we have a good chance to 
thwart Menon’s plot even now. And I’d propose 
it if only we had fuel.” 

“What do you mean?” exclaimed Norman. “The 
bunkers are full.” 

“No. I mean not coal, but oil—gas for the Pole 
Star” The Doctor spread his strong hands on the 
table and studied the solemn faces before him. 

245 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“Men, I believe I have fathomed part of this mys¬ 
tery. I believe the First Officer deliberately aban¬ 
doned the Erik when the chance offered. I believe, 
after what Norman told us about the fake leak, that 
the men were led to fear the ship would sink. You 
know we found a good deal of water in her bilges, 
and somewhat of a list on her. Thus they left her 
willingly. ,, 

“But why should they go?” cried Rudd. 

“That I can’t guess. Probably some deep-laid 
scheme we shall not learn till we get back. The 
point is that Menon and his party will probably be 
able to carry out his full plan if we don’t turn up in 
time to head him off.” 

“But you admit we can’t work the Erik out,” 
argued the Skipper, “and the Pole Star could never 
weather the ice and gales we’d meet in the North 
Atlantic this time of year.” 

“Quite so,” agreed the Doctor. 

“Well, what else is there—ye can’t walk home!” 

“No, Pike. But if we had fuel for the Pole Star 
we might negotiate the Northwest Passage and get 
to Alaska in time for the last ship south. If we 
caught it, we would nab Menon with the goods on.” 

For a moment no one spoke. The proposal was 
so daring, so desperate, so completely unexpected, 
that all were struck dumb by it. 

“Is it possible, sir?” faltered Norman. 

246 


A DESPERATE CHANCE 


“Quite. Provided weather and ice conditions are 
reasonably favorable we will have a very fair chance 
of winning. You know the Pole Star has a high¬ 
speed propeller aboard that will drive her at nearly 
twenty knots.” 

As if coming out of a trance the Skipper sprang 
to his feet. “You don’t mean to say you think we 
could really get there in time to meet Menon?” 

“I certainly do. That’s the point in the plan. The 
Erik could be sent for next year.” 

The Skipper’s hands clenched. For an instant 
it looked as if he were going to attack Dr. Barlow. 

“And you say that all you need is fuel for the 
boat?” he roared. 

“That’s all, Pike.” 

“Well, then, I’ll tell you my secret. I’ve got over 
a thousand gallons of gas stowed away on this ship 
that no one ever knew anything about!” 


XXV 

THE RACE BEGINS 
HE Skipper’s startling announcement that 



he had 1,000 gallons of fuel aboard the 


Erik demanded immediate explanation. 

“Experience,” said he, “has taught me that of all 
items of arctic equipment fuel is the most important. 
Man can gather meat, build shelter, and contrive gar¬ 
ments in the North. But fuel in safe quantities is 
not to be had.” 

“My idea, exactly,” put in the Doctor, “in fitting 
us out with so much kerosene.” 

“Correct, Barlow. Only you didn’t take adversity 
sufficiently into consideration. When Dinger 
Brothers offered me this command I insisted on a 
fresh-water tank directly under my cabin. As the 
crew had not then been assembled, none of my men 
suspected the existence of this tank. I had it filled 
with fuel and a forged-steel padlock put on. I wear 
that key around my neck.” The Skipper here 
reached inside his flannel shirt and drew out a long 
key. “There’s the key to our future, gentlemen!” 

“And Menon’s fate!” exclaimed the Doctor. 

From that dramatic moment the party’s life be- 


248 


THE RACE BEGINS 


came one of stirring action. The tank proved full. 
Its contents were hastily drawn off into containers 
or poured into the Pole Star's 100-gallon drums. 

“Every minute counts !” was the Doctor’s slogan. 

Norman and Rudd put their dash and spirit into 
assembling supplies. Only the most concentrated 
food was admitted. Chocolate, pemmican, biscuit, 
and tea were the chief features of diet. Only two 
rifles and a thousand rounds of ammunition were to 
be taken. This was a race. The chance of having 
to winter halfway through the Passage must be 
hazarded. 

“We’ll have to depend on the Eskimos if we get 
stuck!” declared Dr. Barlow. “Speed is our sole 
aim now.” 

“But are you sure we can find them?” asked 
Rudd. 

“Fairly, yes. Stefansson discovered a tribe of 
what he termed blond Eskimo around Coronation 
Gulf about halfway across. The people were friendly. 
Indeed, they never had seen a white man before and 
looked on him as a god!” 

In less than twenty-four hours the Pole Star was 
ready to start. A new sail had been cut from the 
Erik's supply of canvas and a spare mast lashed 
along the rail. The cabin was filled with fuel tins. 
Every available inch of deck space was crowded 
with cases of pemmican and equipment. Each man 
249 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


carried one spare set of clothing. Besides actual 
necessities every ounce of weight was dispensed 
with. Even the Skipper’s navigating outfit con¬ 
sisted of but one small sextant and nautical tables. 
The Doctor’s medical kit was perilously condensed. 
Boggs, to his sorrow, had to abandon a fine pair of 
walrus tusks he had collected. 

“You can get them next year when we rescue the 
Erik ” the Doctor consoled him. “Until then we 
are going to put up the fight of our lives to beat 
Menon home!” 

“How about mess gear?” asked Norman. 

“A pot for boiling, one for tea. No more,” was 
the determined reply. “We are overloaded any¬ 
way, and cannot risk another half inch of free¬ 
board.” 

Before shoving off the Skipper insisted that extra 
precautions be taken to leave the ship in the greatest 
possible security. By means of a kedge anchor she 
was warped in until her keel rested on the sandy 
bottom, which was very soft at this point. As the 
tide was low at the time, she would thereafter ride 
easily; the shallow water would prevent any heavy 
ice drifting in on her. Extra lines were run to the 
crosstrees from large boulders ashore to steady her 
in case she got into difficulties with the season ice. 
Every sea valve was inspected and the engine parts 
well slushed up with grease. 

250 


THE RACE BEGINS 


“We may be back here yet/’ counseled the Skip¬ 
per a little wistfully. 

The Doctor, however, would not cater to any 
weakening. “Not on your life, Pike. We’re out 
to avenge the Erik —and we’re going to succeed!” 

Departure was without formality. Up to the last 
moment all five men were zealously engaged in aid¬ 
ing the precipitate change of plans. Boggs scram¬ 
bled on and off the launch so often that he several 
times declared himself ready for the grave. Neither 
of the boys had time for their usual bantering of 
the fireman. They were hustling cases and tins out 
of the ship’s hold and over the side with slam-bang 
speed. Dr. Barlow and the Skipper directed the 
work, but lost no opportunity to lend physical aid 
when possible. By midnight everything was aboard. 

“We can’t stop to sleep,” announced the Doctor. 
“I’ll take the first watch, and the rest of you can 
turn in on deck.” 

Boggs started his engine; Rudd hove off the 
lines; and the Pole Star slid clear. With her new 
propeller she was around in a jiffy and five minutes 
later passed through the rocky portals of Erik 
Harbor. 

The next day a brief stop was made at the stone 
hut on the other side of the peninsula to take on 
some of Dr. Barlow’s papers and records. 

“We must not forget the purpose of the expe- 

251 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


dition,” he told Rudd. “Despite our haste from 
now on, there is no reason we cannot make a running 
survey of the waters through which we shall pass, 
as well as lay out a route for our next visit to these 
regions. I have a small pocket dip needle which 
enables me to take magnetic observations. And 
with the Captain’s sextant we can collect a sufficient 
number of angles for chart work after we return.” 

“You are certainly a horse for work!” exclaimed 
Rudd. 

“He sure is!” agreed Norman. “I’ve felt for a 
day and a half as if I were attached to a New York 
hose company and on my way to a fire 1” 

“You are,” put in the Skipper. “A fire and a riot 
and a lynching—just wait till we get back!” And 
turning to the Doctor he added, plaintively: “You 
don’t think we can miss it, do you Barlow?” 

“Not if our luck holds. We ought to have more 
wind though. Remember we have been able to take 
fuel enough to last us only a little more than half 
way. The sail has got to do the rest.” 

As if in answer to the Doctor’s wish a brisk 
wind sprang up just as the Pole Star entered Victoria 
Straits. Fortunately the season was an open one. 
What ice there was could easily be avoided. At 
once the engine was stopped, the mast unstepped, 
and the sail spread. As the white sheet filled and 
bellied, the Pole Star leaped ahead as if alive. 

252 


THE RACE BEGINS 


“Got a bone in her teeth like a torpedo boat!” 
cried Rudd, admiringly. “Just look at that bow 
wave!” He was right. The little launch could 
make splendid time with a quartering breeze and 
the green water fairly boiled under her neat spoon 
bow. 

Day in and day out for a solid week the strong 
blustering wind continued out of the north and east. 
And both day and night the Pole Star sped along. 
No stop was made even for fresh water. The lim¬ 
ited quantity in the launch breakers finally had to 
be rationed out. No stop was made for meat; 
though seal and walrus were sighted almost hourly 
on vagrant floes. No stop was made to dry the 
small crews’ dripping garments, soaked by the spray 
that never ceased to dash over the entire boat; or to 
dry the cabin’s moldy bunks and boxes; or to dry 
the large case of biscuit which leaked. Its contents 
were served out by the indomitable Doctor to his 
companions, who ate the mess with wry faces. Grim 
determination marked the party’s inexorable plan to 
win. With every advantage on Mr. Menon’s side, 
he still lacked the steely unity of purpose that actu¬ 
ated the five weary but undaunted explorers. 

“You never can tell,” repeated the Doctor over 
and over again. “Maybe to-night—maybe to-mor¬ 
row—this splendid wind will drop. Ice will come. 

253 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Then we must lie and wait. Save the seconds, boys! 
Save the seconds!” 

‘‘Aye, aye, sir!” they muttered through teeth 
clenched to keep them from chattering. Rudd spun 
the wheel with knuckles gone white from cold and 
exertion. Boggs lay a soggy and unconscious form 
on the lee side, where he sought to make up a bit 
of sleep after a hard night of steering. 

On August 5, the wind dropped to such an extent 
that use of fuel was justified. “I believe we need a 
little lightening anyway,” declared the Skipper. 
“And it will give us a chance to clear out the cabin.” 

But after less than twenty-four hours of calm, the 
wind came back stronger than ever. Double stays 
had to be rove off to save the mast from going over 
the side; and lashings in the deck load had twice to 
be renewed. The strain on every one was terrible. 
Though hot tea was served out every watch, but 
two meals a day could be afforded from the limited 
amount of provisions on board. 

The passage through to Coronation Gulf was 
choked with ice. Fortunately, however, the pre¬ 
vious northerly winds had jammed most of the field 
to the southward, leaving a narrow lane through 
which the Pole Star dashed as if pursued by all 
the Eskimo devils in the Northland. Entrance into 
Coronation Gulf was celebrated by a stop long enough 
to replenish the exhausted water supply. Norman 
254 


THE RACE BEGINS 


shot a caribou near by and a good hot meal was 
served in comfort for the first time since leaving 
Erik Harbor. 

“I am very hopeful/’ said Dr. Barlow. “Our 
progress thus far has been little short of miracu¬ 
lous.” 

“Might do it once in twenty-five years!” grunted 
the Skipper, who had somewhat objected to the 
relentless speed with which the launch had been 
driven. 

Boggs shrugged his rheumatic shoulders and an¬ 
nounced dejectedly: “We ain’t there yet. Many a 
man what’s thought he was safe has been ditched 
at the tape!” 

“Gee, Boggsy,” commented Norman, shaking a 
stripped caribou rib at the fireman, “if you didn’t 
have any troubles you wouldn’t know what to do 
with yourself 1” 

Most of the way across the gulf fuel was used. 
Clear water made steering easy, and good time was 
the result. Rudd here noted a marked change in the 
land. As the sun had begun to set, due to the more 
southerly latitude, there was no longer the beautiful 
midnight colorings of further north. Instead of 
highlands spread great barren wastes that were not 
unlike the prairies of western Kansas in winter 
time. 

An ice jam at the exit from the gulf nearly fin- 
255 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


ished the Pole Star in one nip. The lead patch Rudd 
put on when the launch was recovered had to be 
renewed, and a great deal of water got into the 
bedding, which had been moved down into the cabin. 
But many weeks of hardship had numbed the party 
into calm acceptance of each disaster that overtook it. 
Without excitement or undue exertion the damage 
was repaired and the boat driven on her weary way. 

Several mornings later Rudd awakened with a 
queer feeling of giddiness. “Guess this work is 
beginning to tell on me,” was his first thought. 
Indeed, the weeks of unending toil and exposure 
had been enough to finish off a less rugged physique 
than his. 

Just then Dr. Barlow stuck his head down the 
hatch and shouted: “Out, lads, and have a look at 
the polar sea!” Its swell Rudd had felt. 

The Pole Star had at last escaped from the peril¬ 
ous mazes of the archipelago and was now entering 
the final lap of her great race. To the north as far 
as the eye could reach was open water. Southward 
lay the low and desolate coast of North America, 
an awful wilderness of tundra and tangled under¬ 
growth. Stunted trees had begun to show them¬ 
selves in spots—crippled promises of their taller, 
stronger brothers further south. 

Captain Pike seized the Doctor’s hand. “Barlow,” 
he cried, “you’re a great man! This means we 
256 


THE RACE BEGINS 


have come through the Northwest Passage in a 
single season, something no other living person has 
ever done. Even Amundsen, its discoverer, had to 
winter on his way across.” 

The Doctor laughed. With open sea before them 
there was no reason in the world, they thought, why 
the rest of the trip shouldn’t be made rapidly and 
in safety. After rounding Point Barrow the Pole 
Star must surely encounter a Revenue Cutter or a 
whaler, which would pick them up and take the 
whole party south. Or, if not, sufficient fuel could 
be bought at one of the northern trading stations to 
take them down to Skagway, where the autumn 
steamer to Seattle could be caught. 

“Think of it, Norman,” Rudd exclaimed, “we’re 
going to be waiting on the dock when Mr. Menon 
returns!” 

Norman grinned from ear to ear. “I can’t bear 
to think of it,” he chuckled, “it nearly busts me 
wide open with joy!” 

Matters continued happily until a few nights later 
just after Cape Bathurst had been rounded. The 
wind rose again. But this time, instead of a strong 
and helping flow of air, came a series of wintry 
blasts that lashed the sea into enormous combing 
waves. 

“We’ll have to heave to,” decided the Doctor, to 
which the Skipper heartily agreed. 

257 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 

But the shore to the south was a lee shore. It 
was a scarce ten miles away and offered no shelter 
along its straight and gravelly beach. A sea anchor 
was therefore quickly rigged with the spare mast 
and two oars covered by canvas. With this safety 
precaution the Pole Star rode bow to sea throughout 
the night. 

Norman had just taken the watch at eight next 
morning when Dr. Barlow seized the Skipper’s arm 
and pointed excitedly to windward. ‘Tee!” he 
shouted to make himself heard above the storm. 

Sure enough, a horde of small but wicked floes 
brought down by the gale from the great polar pack 
was sweeping upon the helpless boat. Within an 
hour they cut the line to the sea anchor. 

“Run for it, Boggs!” yelled the Doctor. 

The engine was started and the Pole Star turned 
tail to the host of white devils behind her. 

Captain Pike shook his head. “It’s the only thing 
to do, Barlow,” he admitted. “Run to the west and 
escape if we can. But it’s a small chance!” 

Almost before he finished speaking a low booming 
of distant surf became audible above the roar of the 
storm and ice. Closer and closer the little launch 
was swept, pressed by the pursuing pack. To make 
matters worse, flurries of snow scudded along with 
each heavy squall and hid the sea as well as the land. 
The fury of the gale seemed to redouble with each 

258 


THE RACE BEGINS 


spasm. Black waves, twice the height of the tiny 
launch’s mast, towered above her. Great ice cakes 
weighing tons were stood on edge by colossal masses 
of water. 

Suddenly the Pole Star careened to port and 
seemed to rear vertically upon her nose. Crash of 
timbers told she had struck. 

“Jump for it!” screamed some one. The Doctor 
at the wheel flung himself clear in time to avoid the 
next mountainous sea, which would have crushed 
every bone in his body against the wreckage. 

Rudd tried desperately to jump, but the wave 
caught him. He sank with lungs filled to bursting 
by one last frantic breath. For an eternity he felt 
himself dragged and tumbled helplessly along in the 
surf’s maelstrom. At last his feet touched bottom. 
He dug his toes in and fought against the receding 
flood of waters. A moment later his head and waist 
were clear. He rose and struggled stumblingly 
toward the beach. Twice more seas engulfed him. 
But he fought gamely, and in the end fell nearly 
unconscious with cold and exhaustion upon the bar¬ 
ren snow-covered strand. He had not strength to 
rise, but lay stunned and shivering in the wet slush. 


CHAPTER XXVI 
MORE SPEED! 


(( rjnf HIS is the end! ” ^ int0 Rudd ’ s dulled 

jf brain. “The others must be in the same 
fix!” 

Dimly he recalled the truth of the Barrens. A 
thousand miles to the southward they ran: the 
American counterpart of Siberian Steppes. They 
formed a desolate land, gutted by the glaciers of long 
past ages. Only the wolf and the evil raven were 
at home in its awful loneliness. Nine months of 
the year it was dead, each stream and spring in the 
grip of the bitter cold. And the summer was but 
another form of agony for those who dared to 
enter. 

Rudd tried to close his eyes, but frost had crusted 
their lids and kept them painfully apart. Again the 
words throttled his desire to live: “This is the endl” 

A voice broke through the barrier of roaring wind 
and pounding surf. It was a strange voice, and it 
slightly roused the semiconscious boy. But as he 
drifted off again he felt himself lifted into the air 
as if by a sea that had overrun the rest. 

260 


MORE SPEED! 


Almost immediately, so it seemed, he opened his 
eyes in heaven. At least it was heaven compared to 
anything he had known for a long time. There was 
warmth and the fragrance of flapjacks. His body 
was embedded in soft blankets. Light from a shaded 
lantern flooded softly the walls about. 

“Hello, young fellow! Feeling better!” It was 
the voice of the beach. 

Rudd turned his head weakly. “Why—yes. 

Where—who-’ ’ 

The stranger, a hulking, clean-shaven fellow in 
woolens and coonskin cap, smiled pleasantly. “Now 
just lie still, old scout, till we get that stomach full; 
and then we’ll talk!’’ 

Rudd lay back with a sigh. Where the others were 
or how he happened to be here were for the moment 
problems too great for his strength. Silently he 
accepted the steaming coffee, a wide plate heaped 
with beans and molasses, and finally half a dozen 
six-inch “flaps.” 

“I’m Matthews,” said the stranger suddenly. 
“Matthews of the Standard Oil Company. We’re 
up for a look around. You know oil has been dis¬ 
covered along the Mackenzie. The rest of the gang 
are next door in the big tent.” 

A shadow of pain flickered across Rudd’s face. 

“Your crowd, too,” added Matthews hastily. 
“That is except-” 


261 




THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Rudd propped himself forward, fear gripping his 
heart. “Except whom?” he shot back. 

“Sailorman, I think. Was there a Boggs along?” 

Tears came into the boy’s eyes. “Boggsy then. 
Poor, poor old Boggsy! He was always sure he 
was doomed.” 

Matthews came over and patted his patient’s 
shoulder. “Never mind, lad. You were lucky to 
have any one saved. We saw the whole thing. The 
other three were carried clean above high water 
mark by that wave which up-ended you. You 
snagged a line, I guess, and went under. We 
thought you were a goner. Been twelve hours since 
you came ashore.” 

“Twelve hours!” gasped Rudd. “Why, I thought 
it was just a few minutes ago!” 

The tent flap jerked suddenly aside and Dr. Bar¬ 
low’s cheery face came through. “Hello, Rudd! 
Alive yet?” 

“About three quarters, sir!” smiled Rudd, begin¬ 
ning to feel the strong coffee grip his muscle fibers 
into life. 

The Doctor shot a look at Matthews and went on. 
“Well, hurry up. We’ve got to leave as soon as 
possible!” 

“Leave!” was the astonished reply. “Why, I 
thought the Pole Star was smashed to kindling!” 

“Match-sticks,” corrected the Doctor. “But there’s 
262 


MORE SPEED! 


more than one way to skin a cat. And we’re going 
to skin Menon, don’t you forget it!” 

Rudd looked from one to the other of the laugh¬ 
ing faces before him. It didn’t seem possible the 
party could go on after this latest catastrophe. That 
so many had even survived was certainly all that 
could reasonably be expected of Fate. 

The Doctor seated himself beside the little cot 
on which Rudd lay. “Matthews is an old friend of 
mine,” he explained. “I have told him about the 
Erik. He thinks he remembers Menon—has some¬ 
thing on him nearly as bad as we have. And he’s 
going to help us south. The moment you have the 
strength we start. Pike and Norman will follow 
in a few days.” 

Matthews drew a rolled chart from his kit bag. 
“Here’s northern Canada, Doctor.” 

“Yes, Rudd, this will show you what we are going 
to do. We have landed at the western edge of the 
great delta of the Mackenzie River. Matthews is 
very kindly lending us two fast canoes with native 
paddlers to carry us to the oil well just north of Fort 
Norman. That is nearly four hundred miles south 
of here, and may take us ten days.” 

Rudd eyed the vast distances with growing doubt. 
“But we can’t possibly get to any railroad before 
October!” he groaned. 

“Through the generosity of Matthews we can. 

263 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


He has two planes at Fort Norman. They are due 
to leave a week from to-morrow with mail and his 
reports. They go direct to McMurray, Alberta. 
There we catch a train for Edmonton. Across Sas¬ 
katchewan will take another day or so, until we 
make the Limited for Montreal, and on up to Sydney. 
I can wire to have the government agents meet me 
there with a special boat for St. Johns. And, un¬ 
less Menon pulls off a miracle, we ought to be there 
first.” 

Just hearing the details proved as great a stimu¬ 
lant as the coffee. Rudd found he could not stay put. 
His clothes had been dried. He drew them on with 
a sense of girding himself for a final dash. That 
3,000 miles and more must be covered in the space 
of a few days detracted not at all from his enthu¬ 
siasm. 

He found the Skipper pulling away at his pipe 
between snatches of yarns exchanged with a new¬ 
found acquaintance. As usual he seemed resigned to 
his fate, and only occasionally broke out with fiery 
maledictions when he recalled his First Officer’s 
crimes. Norman was off for caribou, having in no 
way suffered from his recent ducking. 

At dawn the following day two canoes set out, 
one containing Dr. Barlow, the other Rudd. Thanks 
to Matthews, the paddlers were the pick of Indian 
guides. Dr. Barlow’s promise of a fat reward if the 
264 


MORE SPEED! 


plane were caught spurred them on to a great effort. 
At that they seemed not to hurry, but dipped their 
paddles with a mechanical regularity of stroke which 
could be kept up for hours. 

The first two days good progress was made; and 
when the arctic circle was passed just above Fort 
Good Hope, Rudd felt that he had left the North 
behind him. But his mistake soon was evident. 

Huge black flies and mosquitoes had made the trip 
intolerable. When a rain set in and discouraged the 
venomous insects the passengers were accordingly 
delighted. The Indians, however, shook their heads 
over the weather and wanted to camp early. Finally, 
they refused to go any further. 

Dr. Barlow argued with them in sign language 
until his wrists nearly fell off. But to no purpose. 
The Indians merely shrugged their shoulers, point¬ 
ing first to the south and then to the sky. 

At this moment the puffing of a motor boat came 
over the river. 

“Must be from the fort,” was Rudd’s first thought. 
But to his surprise the trim little craft, which was 
no larger than a whaleboat, proved to hold two Bar¬ 
ren Land Eskimos. They also seemed anxious about 
the weather and headed for the beach some distance 
down. 

Dr. Barlow determined to try them. “You watch 
265 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


our stuff,” he told Rudd. “And IT 1 see if these 
newcomers will give us a lift.” 

But before the Doctor returned, the Indians’ fears 
were realized. Wind swept across the broad body of 
the river and drove the water almost into the little 
camp. Twice the tent blew down before enough 
boulders could be gathered to hold it securely. 

“No use!” exclaimed the Doctor on his return. 
His hair spread out in wet black streams down his 
forehead, and he was panting with the exertion of 
plowing back against the wind. 

Rudd sat moodily on his sleeping bag, which he 
hated to unroll because of the soaking it was sure 
to get. “Never mind,” said he. “We ought to 
have learned patience by this time.” 

A cheerless evening was spent in the cold tent. 
Sleep was out of the question with the deafening 
slatting of canvas and the drumming of the rain. 
Dr. Barlow entertained Rudd with some description 
of the land they were traversing. 

“Do you realize,” he asked, “that for one hundred 
and thirty-two years white men have been traveling 
this river ? It taps more than a million square miles 
of undeveloped country. Enormous forest reserves, 
vast lakes filled with fish, untold mineral wealth— 
all lie within it untouched. And yet to this day 
there are but a little over two hundred white set¬ 
tlers!” 


266 


MORE SPEED! 

“But aren’t there a good many Indians and 
Eskimos?” 

“Possibly five thousand all told. But think of the 
immensity of their domain!” 

Next morning the Indians refused to go on until 
they had repaired their canoes which had been dam¬ 
aged by the storm. 

“How about the Eskimos?” suggested Rudd. 

For reply Dr. Barlow shook his fist at the Indians. 
“You quitters!” he shouted. “You are just stringing 
me for more money!” But all he got for his 
eloquence was a serene shrug of the natives’ 
shoulders. 

The Eskimo agreed to return as far as Fort Good 
Hope with the two explorers. This station was just 
sixteen miles south of the arctic circle, and was the 
first touch of civilization Rudd had seen in months. 
The whitewashed log houses looked very neat and 
clean, and to his frost-numbed nose proved a fragrant 
change from the acrid seal stench to which he had 
become so used. 

Dr. Barlow gave the white man in charge no 
chance to doubt the urgency of their mission. “Every 
moment counts!” the Doctor shouted at him, punc¬ 
tuating the words by slamming his fist into his open 
palm. “Matthews is lending us his planes. We have 
three days to catch them. Name your price and I’ll 
pay it!” 


267 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


The man smiled. “I’m sorry,” he apologized. “It 
isn't the money; it’s the bare fact that we haven't 
any boats. All are off fishing. How about the 
Eskimo who brought you this far?” 

“I’ll try him.” 

But pleadings and imprecations proved of no 
avail. The Eskimo stoutly maintained that his wife 
and his two children awaited him. Wolves might 
be at them now. Besides, The Ramparts were 
dangerous. 

“You realize,” said the white man, “that just south 
of here the river narrows from two miles to a few 
hundred yards. This gorge we call The Ramparts. 
Its walls rise vertically hundreds of feet. Boatmen 
fear it.” 

“How about your steamer?” 

“None for a week, and she takes another week to 
unload.” 

The Doctor threw up his hands. “Rudd,” he 
groaned despairingly, “luck certainly seems against 
us this time!” 

Rudd’s face lengthened perceptibly. If the re¬ 
sourceful Doctor was discouraged, the outlook must 
be well-nigh hopeless. 

“Is there no way?” he cried. 

The white man shook his head. “None unless you 

fly- 


268 


MORE SPEED! 


A low and distant whine floated down from the 
sky. All three men whirled as if shot. 

“Magic!” ejaculated the white man. “Your plane, 
or Pm a liar!” 

Rudd stared with open mouth and squinted eyes. 
Suddenly, “I see it!” he shouted, and pointed due 
south into the mist-whitened horizon above the forest. 

The plane, which was fitted with pontoons, landed 
on the river in front of the settlement and taxied 
ashore. The entire population rushed down to lend 
a hand dragging it up. The aviator struggled stiffly 
from his seat and came forward holding out his 
hand. 

“What’s up?” asked the white man. “Thought 
you were bound south.” 

“I am,” was the terse reply. “But the engine’s 
off at End of Steel. No more mail for a month.” 

“How about the wreckers?” 

“They’re bogged, too.” 

Dr. Barlow pressed forward here and asked the 
fatal question: “Can’t we get out with you? I have 
Mr. Matthews’ permission for you to take the two 
of us to Fort McMurray.” 

“Glad to,” said the aviator. “But what’s the use? 
You can’t possibly get beyond McMurray till Octo¬ 
ber, when the first boat goes down.” 

“But why can’t you fly the extra hundred miles to 
Edmonton?” 


269 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“Can—but no place to land. I'm a water bird, you 
see. Pontoons don’t take on terra firma.” 

The Doctor turned wearily to Rudd. The strain 
of anxiety and the party’s unbroken series of misfor¬ 
tunes was beginning to tell on him. “We’ve got to 
get there!” he muttered. “We’ve got to get there! 
We’ve got-” 

“Never mind, sir,” the white man broke in kindly. 
“Come on in and I’ll give you the best wild goose 
dinner you ever tasted!” 

But the goose stuck in Rudd’s throat. Like the 
Doctor, but one thought gripped his brain. “We’ve 
got to get there!” 

He watched the aviator eat. Somehow the man 
fascinated him. He and his plane stood for success. 
How could he be used? Wasn’t there some way? 

Rudd suddenly laid down his knife and fork and 
swallowed with a gulp. “Say,” he exclaimed, “sup¬ 
pose we did come down on land?” 

The abruptness of his question startled the others 
into silence. All turned to the aviator who balanced 
half a boiled potato on his fork. 

“What would happen?” said the airman, “why, 
we’d bust the pontoons to smithereens—maybe the 
lower wings. I can’t promise we wouldn’t bust 
ourselves into the bargain.” 

“How about that morass near the station?” sug¬ 
gested the white man. 


270 



MORE SPEED! 


“Would save our necks but not the plane. And 
they’d have to dig us out, sure as shooting!” 

But the more Rudd’s question was discussed the 
more practicable it seemed. Dr. Barlow declared 
himself willing to sign a voucher covering all dam¬ 
ages to plane and driver. “And I’ll hang on a bonus 
for making the train,” he added. 

Finally the aviator agreed. He wasn’t at all enthu¬ 
siastic, but he agreed, which was all that was neces¬ 
sary. 

Though the sun was already north of west it was 
decided to make the first hop to Fort Norman that 
afternoon. The plane took the air easily, despite its 
extra load, and, circling once for altitude, led off 
swiftly into the south. At a thousand feet Rudd 
got some idea of the vastness of the wilderness 
through which their route lay. As far as the eye 
could reach spread the limitless forest, broken here 
and there by heathered muskeg or glistening lakes. 

Fort Norman proved to be a sort of inhabited 
mudhole, with the Hudson Bay store flanked by a 
row of ramshackle Indian log huts. One producing 
oil well near by had brought considerable activity to 
the settlement without improving living conditions 
in the slightest. All night long dogs howled and 
fought outside. While inside Rudd battled the 
sleepless hours away with mosquitoes as “large as 
humming birds” he told the Doctor next morning. 

271 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Ensuing days were not unlike those on the Pole 
Star across the top of the world. With a daring 
that brought Rudd's heart into his mouth time and 
again the aviator drove his frail machine through 
wind and clouds. Way stations at intervals of about 
300 miles provided fuel. Rest and food were also 
available at these places. But both passengers were 
keyed to such a pitch of helpless energy that neither 
could keep still long enough to eat properly or sleep 
in peace. 

At the last stop before Edmonton, Dr. Barlow 
inspected the pontoon struts. “We don’t want them 
too strong,” he said. “They have got to break our 
fall when we come down.” 

“Never fear,” laughed the driver. “We’ll break 
everything there is to break when we crash!” 

At four the next afternoon the plane encircled the 
town. It lay spread like a vast hive five hundred 
feet below. Near one side was visible the rectangular 
red roof of the railroad station, from which a web of 
glimmering rails spun southward. Steam plumed 
from an engine drawn up beside it. A black mass 
showed where the crowd waited to bid farewell to 
the passengers. 

The Doctor pulled out his watch. The roar of the 
motor prevented speech. With his finger he indi¬ 
cated that the train left in ten minutes. 

Twice the birdman circled. Then he cut the motor 
272 


MORE SPEED! 


out and dived in a long, gentle sweep. The black 
earth seemed to rise to meet them. The muddy field 
on which they had to land lay ahead a hundred feet 
down. The speed was sickening. Rudd’s fingers 
gripped feverishly a strut near his knee; his heels 
braced with such intense force they nearly drove 
through the hull. 

Then came a terrific crash, followed by a splinter¬ 
ing of wood. The plane’s body gave a wild swoop 
and Rudd felt himself hurled through the air. He 
turned a full somersault and landed squarely on his 
shoulders in a mud puddle two feet deep. Four feet 
away sat the Doctor in a puddle of equal size and 
muddiness. 

A great cheer went up from the crowd. The 
aviator extricated himself from the wreckage and 
waved his hat. 

“All right!” he yelled. “Nobody hurt!” 

The Doctor’s splotched face became wreathed in 
smiles as he struggled from his natural mud bath. 
“You bet we’re all right!” he exclaimed. 

“And there’s going to be somebody hurt yet! Eh?” 
shouted Rudd. 

“Righto!” 

A long drawn cry echoed from the platform: “All 
Ab—o—a—r—D! 


CHAPTER XXVII 


BAFFLED! 

R UDD and Dr. Barlow, accompanied by a 
federal agent and a detective of the Cana- 
- dian Secret Service, reached St. Johns, New¬ 
foundland, on a crisp morning in late September. 
The Doctor immediately chartered a cab and gave 
the driver directions to proceed with all haste to the 
home of Mr. Dinger, senior member of the firm of 
Dinger Brothers, Limited. 

Bullock Dinger himself met them at the door of 
his great stone mansion. He looked the part of a 
shipowner. Indeed, for years he had sailed the seven 
seas, his own master. Now his stocky frame, wide¬ 
spread legs, and broad, gale-cured countenance still 
marked him a man of seafaring life. 

“My friend Barlow!” he cried, and held out both 
hands. 

“The same,” returned the Doctor, a little dryly. 
“I want you to meet Mr. Winters, a member of our 
expedition as you may recall. These,” indicating the 
agent and the detective, “are Mr. Peel and Mr. 
Thorpe, friends whom I have taken the liberty of 
bringing along.” 


274 


BAFFLED! 


“Of course, of course,” bowed Mr. Dinger, rub¬ 
bing his hands. “Now come in, gentlemen. I want 
to hear more of your wonderful tale.” 

The Doctor’s eyes widened. “More!” he echoed. 
“You don’t mean to say-?” 

Mr. Bullock threw open the door of his magnifi¬ 
cent library before replying. “I do,” said he. “I do 
mean to say that I know much of your heroism 
already. Your wire from Montreal was followed in 
the same hour by Mr. Menon’s appearance. You 
should hear him praise you!” 

Dr. Barlow bit his lip. Rudd’s face was a study 
in perplexity. The agent and the detective stood 
quietly waiting. They knew nothing except that 
their services might be needed. 

With a slight movement of his shoulders the 
Doctor regained control of himself. 

“You say,” he went on, “Menon has told you 
everything ?” 

“Not me, exactly,” admitted Mr. Dinger. “The 
fact is, I have been too busy to see him yet. But my 
nephew, young Henry, has brought me a full 
account.” 

“Yes?” said the Doctor inquiringly. He recalled 
that it had been Henry Dinger, the junior member of 
the firm, who, at the last moment, insisted on Mr. 
Menon as First Officer of the Erik . 

“Yes, I had Henry attend to the matter for me. 

275 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Seems Menon and his men were picked up by the 
whaler, Southern Cross, after the Erik was lost.” 

“So the Erik was lost!” exclaimed the Doctor 
with an admirable imitation of surprise. 

“Yes. That’s so, you were marooned before she 
was driven out by the ice. She got pinched by the 
main pack and went down in a hundred fathoms of 
water.” 

The Doctor turned to Rudd. “Ah!” said he. 
“Poor old bucket!” 

Rudd bit his tongue to keep from grinning. He 
dared not speak. 

“But Caverly?” questioned the Doctor. “Was he 
—er—saved? That is, did he suffer any?” 

Mr. Dinger glared at Rudd. “As I recall,” he 
said slowly, “Reginald Caverly nearly lost his life, 
due to your young friend Winters here. Winters 
disliked the lad, didn’t he—and actually shot at 
him?” 

Rudd’s face flushed a fiery red. But before he 
could protest the falsehood Dr. Barlow spoke up 
quickly. “Yes, I believe they did have a little diffi¬ 
culty. But, Dinger, you know what boys are.” 

“Humph!” grunted the shipowner, and turned to 
his desk. “While you’re here, Barlow, we’d better 
straighten out the charter. Menon tells me Pike was 
willing to accompany you through the Northwest 
276 


BAFFLED! 


Passage. Do you call that a decent way for any 
Skipper to behave ?” 

“Possibly,” was the even reply. “What else did 
Menon tell you?” 

Mr. Dinger glared savagely at the Doctor. “Quite 
a little, Barlow. And, much as I hate to admit it, I 
am a little disappointed in you. Despite Menon’s 
praise, your actions in abandoning the Erik without 
the slightest formality were scarcely commendable.” 

Dr. Barlow stepped swiftly to the desk behind 
which Mr. Dinger stood braced and angry. His eyes 
narrowed and into his voice came a flinty hardness 
that Rudd recognized as a danger signal. 

“Dinger,” he said with an effort at self-control, 
“say all you’ve got to say, and then let me have a 
word.” 

Mr. Dinger was for a moment taken aback. “Do 
you mean you have another story? Why, Henry’s 
account was certainly an exact repetition of Menon’s 
diary. He said you and Pike left the ship in the 
launch near Boothia and sent Caverly back with word 
you would continue west. Menon tried to save the 
ship and handled her with greatest skill until she 
got nipped just below Cape Chidley. By luck and 
courage he managed to get every man to the Southern 
Cross” 

“Every man?” asked the Doctor. 

“Yes, all but your party. Oh, yes, and the young 
277 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Second Officer Norman. Poor fellow, he lost his 
nerve when the ship entered the ice and tried to 
escape in the motor boat. He never was seen again. 
As she was practically without food or fuel, he 
undoubtedly died of starvation and cold.” 

Dr. Barlow eyed the fireplace thoughtfully. Then 
he turned to a chart above the desk. “You say the 
Erik went down at Cape Chidley?” he asked. 

“Just below,” corrected Mr. Dinger. “Latitude 

59 ° 40 '.” 

“Then there was no chance for insurance.” 

Mr. Dinger smiled and rubbed his thick hands. 
“Yes, fortunately, there was. We had her covered 
by a policy for seventy-five thousand dollars and a 
rider permitted us to collect anywhere up to 60 0 
north latitude.” 

A beam of revelation expanded Dr. Barlow's face 
until it shone. A moment later Rudd caught the 
point and grinned. 

“Seventy-five thousand dollars!” he exclaimed. 
“You get that for the loss of the Erik?” 

“Yes—that is, not the firm, but my nephew, Henry. 
As a present on his twenty-fifth birthday I gave him 
the Erik's future profits. By a stroke of fate the 
firm lost the ship, while Henry won a fortune!” 

“Very nice,” nodded the Doctor pleasantly. “Now, 
would it be convenient to meet your nephew and 
Menon here this morning?” 

278 


BAFFLED! 


Mr. Dinger’s smile of satisfaction faded. “I 
can’t say it would, Barlow. Perhaps at the office 
later—what’s the idea, anyway?” 

The Doctor shot a meaning glance at the agent 
and the detective. “Nothing,” he said, “only that 
this crook Menon has just pulled off one of the great¬ 
est hoaxes since Dr. Cook came back!” 

“Crook!” shouted Mr. Dinger springing from 
behind his desk. “I’ll have you know he’s my 
nephew’s closest friend!” 

“Doubtless,” said the Doctor with a shrug. 

Mr. Dinger paced the room as if he had been a 
caged tiger. He stopped before the Doctor and 
shook a thick finger. “You’ll pay for this insult, 
Barlow! I’m going to send for them now!” He 
seized the telephone. 

“Delighted,” smiled the Doctor. “Now will you 
do me one more favor ?” 

“What?” snorted the wrathy Dinger. 

“Let me stand behind yonder door when Menon 
arrives. Tell him you’ve heard from me that he 
fomented mutiny aboard the Erik and stole her; and 
that she didn’t sink south of 6o°, either!” 

Mr. Dinger clenched his fists and opened his 
mouth to refuse this further insult to his nephew’s 
associate. Then, as if some cleverer move occurred 
to him, he said: “Very well, Barlow, have your 
way.” 

279 


CHAPTER XXVIII 


THE TRUTH AT LAST! 


D URING the ensuing half-hour wait Dr. 

Barlow steered the conversation into other 
channels, apparently preferring not to di¬ 
vulge too much of what he knew. 

Suddenly a bell jangled in a distant part of the 
house. 

“There they are!” exclaimed Mr. Dinger. Quickly 
he led the agent and the detective around a decora¬ 
tive screen near the folding doors. Rudd and the 
Doctor he concealed behind the heavy window 
hangings. 

Came a knock. “Henry?” called the host. 

The door opened. In stepped a sleek youngster of 
Spanish type. “Good morning, Uncle Bullock,” said 
he suavely, his small black eyes furtively searching 
the room as if he feared others might be present. 
“Good morning, Henry. How about Menon ?” 

At that moment the First Officer appeared. Framed 
in the doorway, dark garments blending with the 
shadowed passageway beyond, his evil face stood 
out with indescribable ugliness. Weather had deep- 
280 


THE TRUTH AT LAST! 


ened the lines from his beaked nose and seared his 
treacherous eyes. Grooming had but accentuated the 
loathsomeness of his hideous features. A sardonic 
smile glittered on his thin and colorless lips. 

With an obsequious bow he advanced. “Good 
morning, my dear Mr. Dinger.” 

The old sailor returned the greeting by a stiff nod. 

“Uncle Bullock,” began the nephew, “we planned 
to meet you at the office later. Mr. Menon wished to 
say good-by.” 

“My house will do as well,” Mr. Dinger replied, 
shortly. And, turning to the First Officer, “Menon,” 
he said, “how about the Erik?” 

Mr. Menon’s smile gave way to a look of cunning. 
“Didn’t your nephew tell you the story?” he asked. 

“He did. But the yarn was not wholly connected. 
Exactly where did the vessel disappear?” 

“Just below Cape Chidley, sir; about 59 0 north. 
If you’ll let me show you on the chart-” 

“How did you know you were there? Did you 
take a sight?” 

“No need, sir. We recognized the cape. The 
Chief will tell you the same—or any of the men.” 

“The men—was there—er—any difficulty with 
them ?” 

Mr. Menon’s slightly defensive air became one 
of self-deprecation. “Really, sir, I don’t like to say 
it, but their loyalty to me has been one of the greatest 
281 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


joys of my life. Few officers could boast of such 
staunch support as I found among my men!” 

“How about the one you lost? Norman—wasn’t 
that his name?” 

The First Officer shook his head. “Poor lad— 
poor, misguided lad! I used every power of persua¬ 
sion on him; offered him every comfort if he would 
only see the right. I failed. He stole the launch— 
mentally unbalanced, no doubt, when he did it. And 
now his bones lie bleaching on some desolate arctic 
strand!” 

“Are you sure?” 

Mr. Menon started and shot a glance at his ques¬ 
tioner from beneath his shaggy eyebrows. “Sure, 
sir? What do you mean?” 

Mr. Dinger made a gesture of impatience. “About 
everything,” he exclaimed petulantly. “About the 
latitude, the men’s behavior, Norman’s fate?” 

“Of course, I am sure! We shall rescue Captain 
Pike and the others next year. Then you will know. 
Indeed, I would volunteer to go after my old friend, 
Dr. Barlow, but I have a splendid offer from Austra¬ 
lia and must leave at once.” 

“Well, Menon, I’m glad you’re in a position to 
prove your assertions for I have received very 
unpleasant news to the contrary from Dr. Barlow 
himself.” 


282 


THE TRUTH AT LAST! 


“What!” snapped Mr. Menon. “You don’t say 
he’s out already?” 

“I didn’t say that. I said he had given me news 
about the expedition. He claims the Erik didn’t 
sink where you said she did, and that you instigated 
trouble among her crew!” 

“Oh,” said the other in tones vastly relieved. 
“So he thinks she sunk further north, does he ? Well, 
he wasn’t there—how could he tell ?” 

“I confess, he did not explain how he knew. But 
what about the men ?” 

Mr. Menon rubbed his bony hands together and 
smiled until his black mustache crinkled. “Ah! I 
have it now. He thinks I was to blame for Caverly’s 
behavior with the Pole Star. If I could only see 
the Doctor and explain! He is such a brave and 
clever chap! Such skill of organization as he showed! 
He is a credit to his government. I am tempted to 
delay my departure to Australia till he returns.” 

Dr. Barlow stepped from behind the curtain. 
“Don’t trouble yourself, Menon,” he said quietly, 
“I’m right here.” 

The First Officer fell back a pace in his amazement. 
His face, naturally pale, took on a grayish hue. His 
talonlike fingers clutched the back of a chair. “You!” 
he exclaimed, huskily. “You!” 

“No other,” smiled the Doctor. “Pinch me and 
see!” 


283 


THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


Mr. Menon’s undisguised emotion held the eyes of 
all. Henry Dinger drew away as if he had discov¬ 
ered too late his error in associating with such a man. 
His uncle folded his arms and squared his jaw with 
condemning firmness. 

Suddenly Mr. Menon’s whole expression changed. 
His eyes fired and his lean jaw protruded. Every 
muscle tautened. “You’ve tried to trick me!” he 
shouted, and pointed a trembling finger at Mr. 
Dinger. “You thought I lied to you and you hid 
this man to hear what I’d say. Ask your nephew. 
He’ll tell you I told him the same!” With the swift¬ 
ness of a cornered tiger he spun on the Doctor. 
“Prove it!” he lashed out. “Prove your rigamarole 
about the mutiny and the Erik and—and—” He 
licked his lips. “Did you see her go down?” he 
cried, shrilly. 

Dr. Barlow shook his head composedly. “No, I 
can’t say I did.” 

Mr. Dinger, who had appeared distinctly non¬ 
plussed by Mr. Menon’s outburst, here broke in with 
an effort to calm him. “A moment, gentlemen; this 
is my house.” 

“Your house,” sneered Mr. Menon. “Yes, and 
I’m your guest! Do you call this treating me as 
one?” 

Mr. Dinger advanced and held out his hand. “I’m 
sorry,” he apologized. “And I want you all to be 
284 


THE TRUTH AT LAST! 

seated while we talk this thing over quietly. Have a 
cigar ?” 

Mr. Menon took one and bit its end with a savage 
snap of his teeth. “I suppose Dr. Barlow cooked 
this up, didn’t he ?” 

“Right,” said the Doctor. “I had reason to be¬ 
lieve some points in your account were not accurate. 
I thought-” 

“There—there!” broke in the host, anxious to 
make amends. “You admitted you didn’t see the 
Erik go down. And you told me you hadn’t encoun¬ 
tered any other of the ship’s company.” 

Mr. Dinger suddenly remembered Rudd. He 
turned to Mr. Menon. “Oh, yes,” he said with a 
nervous laugh, “there’s another here.” 

The First Officer’s fingers dug into the arm of his 
chair till its leather creaked. “Where?” he ex¬ 
claimed. 

“Come out here, Winters,” called Mr. Dinger. 
Rudd stepped forth and nodded at Mr. Menon. An 
ugly glare mingled with relief was the latter’s only 
reply. 

Henry Dinger here spoke up. He saw the danger 
to his friend had momentarily passed. Now was the 
time to save him. He rose. “Well, Uncle,” said he, 
“guess we’d better be going. Mr. Menon leaves for 
Halifax at noon where he gets connections to San 
Francisco.” 


285 



THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


“Fine!” agreed the Uncle, glad to see a way out 
of the unpleasantness. 

The younger man turned to Dr. Barlow. “Pity 
what the North does to some people,” he said, inso¬ 
lently. “While Mr. Menon comes back with nothing 
but praise for you, you sneak up here behind his 
back and try to hang him for something you don’t 
know anything about!” 

Rudd clenched his fists. His knuckles itched to 
seat themselves forcibly upon the smug nephew’s 
impertinent chin. 

Dr. Barlow scratched his head with one finger. 
“The trouble is,” he said good-humoredly, “I do 
know something about it. Mr. Menon is a very 
clever man. His story holds water, as I feared it 
would. And now it appears he is going to make his 
getaway.” 

“Getaway!” snarled the First Officer. And turn¬ 
ing to Mr. Dinger, “Are you going to let him con¬ 
tinue to insult me in your own house?” 

Rudd stepped to the Doctor’s side and whispered, 
“Why not tell them Norman is alive?” 

“They would not believe it,” he replied in ordinary 
tones. 

“Believe what?” snapped Mr. Dinger. 

The Doctor looked at Mr. Menon before he replied: 
“That your young Second Officer, Norman, is alive 
and well!” 


286 


THE TRUTH AT LAST! 


Mr. Menon at this abruptly placed himself in front 
of Mr. Dinger. His face was livid. “Your house 
or not, I’m going to assault that lunatic if he goes on 
with his libel!” he screeched. 

Dr. Barlow paid no heed to the fellow’s temper. 
Even Rudd saw that Mr. Dinger was willing to 
accept almost any explanation to avoid a scene. And, 
swayed by his nephew’s assurances that Mr. Menon 
was a man of highest character and integrity, he took 
an air of indulgence towards the Doctor. Perhaps, 
as Mr. Menon had implied, the hardships of arctic 
travel had actually unseated the explorer’s mind. 

This version was strengthened when Dr. Barlow 
suddenly broke out into a roar of laughter. He had 
gone over to the window and had been standing there 
in dejection. Now he faced the others and guffawed 
till the chandeliers shook. Rudd was terrified. Had 
his friend’s sanity at last given way under the strain ? 

The Doctor suddenly stopped and gulped. “You 
said you were to leave for Australia at noon?” he 
asked of Mr. Menon. 

“I do,” was the contemptuous reply. 

“I wouldn’t,” said the Doctor. “I’d wait and have 
a talk with-—” 

He didn’t complete the sentence. A distant bell 
jangled. Simultaneously came a crash at the front 
door. Angry words from a butler were followed by 
thudding footsteps in the hall. Then, to the stunned 
287 



THE MYSTERY OF THE ERIK 


amazement of every one present, there appeared 
flushed and panting none other than the person of 
Norman! 

“Norman!” cried Rudd. “Thank God!” 

“Righto! I've been right behind you all the way. 
came on next plane, next train, next boat-!" 

At this instant Mr. Menon, who had been crouch¬ 
ing near the desk, made a break for the door. Dr. 
Barlow gave a sharp whistle just as the surprised 
Norman was bowled over backwards. The agent 
and the detective sprang from their hiding places. 
Before the villain had reached the front vestibule 
they had him down and handcuffed. 

The Doctor turned to Mr. Dinger with a smile. 
“That's the kind of luck we have been having all 
summer!" he exclaimed. “We've never known till 
the last instant whether things were going to break 
right or not!" 

“All's well that ends well!" retorted the old sea¬ 
man, tritely. 

Rudd shrugged his thick shoulders and grinned. 
“But sometimes it's a terrible strain, sir," he added. 


THE END 


(I) 





























































































































































































































































































































































































































































